The Wolf Heart
by etudeoftheartist
Summary: Plastered all over her notebooks and scraps of paper are two words: Kim Cameron. Yep, that's what Kim wishes was true. For as long as she can remember, Kim has been infatuated with the magnificent Jared Cameron. After years of blissful daydreaming but with no affection returned, she begins to consider moving on...until one fateful day, the tables turn.
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: All characters belong to Stephenie Meyer.**

**Prologue**_Kim_

It wasn't fair.

Life wasn't fair. Nothing was fair. Not to Kim, anyways.

For as long as she could remember, Kim had been madly in love with Jared Cameron. She liked to claim it wasn't an obsession, just a small crush...only it was getting to the point where it was nearly depressing.

They had lived in the same town, La Push, Washington since birth, and had met in kindergarten at age five. He had always been the perfect gentleman, politely handing Kim the box of crayons, smiling cheekily with his sparkling, chocolate brown eyes and smooth, copper-colored skin. All the other girls in the class, including Kim, would sigh at the sight of how gorgeous Jared was, even back then. And Kim would simply flush and murmur a brief "Thanks."

In first grade, when Kim discovered her immense love for wolves and began skipping brunch and lunch to check out books at the library, Jared had defended her from her peers who called her a nerd, a kiss-up to the tribal council. _"Leave her alone. What did she ever do to you?" _Flashing her megawatt smile, he walked away, leaving a surprised but pleased Kim with her ashamed classmates.

Like all the boys and girls feeling to need to protect themselves from cooties, Jared and Kim had stopped interacting with one another around third grade. But in seventh grade, when making eye contact with the opposite gender was socially accepted, dating had begun. And Jared, being the most popular, handsome guy in the grade since...well, since forever, had immediately found that he was given access to a legion of girls to choose as his girlfriend.

Those girls included lovely creatures like Maisy Davids, Hannah Ateara, Emma Waters, ladies who were not only adept at talking to the mysterious specimens known as boys but were also beautiful. Kim had been full of envy for these classmates, jealous of their perfect curves, flawless faces, designer-worther taste in fashion-all these aspects being things Kim herself lacked.

So it was no wonder that at age 13, Jared's first girlfriend had been Hannah. While their relationship had lasted only briefly-at a mere two months-Kim found out in that agonizing period of time how much she could despise a girl, who admittedly, had never done Kim any wrong. When she witnessed Jared first asking Hannah out, Kim had sprinted to the bathroom, tears streaming down her face. And when they kissed at the third seventh grade dance of the year...Kim turned away and fled home to the safety and solitude of her bedroom, where she could weep in peace over her lack of beauty, grace, and most of all, Jared Cameron.

Jared and Hannah had broken up over reasons Kim did not know of-everyone assumed they were silly middle school squabbles. But Kim had been so relieved when Jared was rid of that disgustingly stunning witch. _Her _Jared.

As the years passed, Jared had continued to date other girls, the relationships all considerably short. And Kim had continued to watch Jared from a distance, admiring his wiry frame, the way he pressed his soft lips together when he was concentrating, his laugh when his buddy, Scott, made a perverted joke. Every time Jared would catch her staring dreamily at her, she would flush and whip her head away, her heart pounding. And when she dared to glance back at Jared, he wouldn't be looking at her anymore, distracted by his friends or something more significant than her.

Her flame of love for him blazed brighter everyday.

But she had never made the move to take the final step, to see if they were really more than friends. And they were in _highschool _now. Kim herself had grown more proud of who she was. While she was no Maisy or life of the party, Kim was confident in her hard-earned A's, her above average looks, decent drawing ability as well as detailed sketches of wolves, and capability to at the least _survive _in social situations. Yet she was too afraid to ask Jared out, to see if they could kiss like he had before with Hannah and Emma, to see if they could cuddle and be each other's soul mate forever.

Still, every time they would chat occasionally, whether it was in class exchanging casual pleasantries or grinning at his failed puns, Kim would always feel her heart drumming again. Her face blazing up. And everything would go into slow motion when her eyes shyly met Jared's deep, penetrating, chocolate gaze. It was this nervousness around Jared that told Kim that it would be impossible for her to ever ask Jared out.

So she had waited. Freshman year had passed. Then sophomore. Still no Jared + Kim written on the bathroom stalls.

And now it was junior year at Forks High School. At 16 years old, Kim was starting to feel tired of waiting for Jared to finally notice her, if not downright annoyed at him and at herself for a stupid obsession for a boy who would probably never love her the way she did. They chatted less and less as the year went on, and Jared glanced at her less frequently everyday. Then one day, he vanished. A few days later, then Paul Lahote, some other junior at school. A week passed, then two. Some people said it had to do with Sam. Others said it had to do with drugs, a secret coupe.

Kim didn't care what the reason was. All she felt was a longing to see Jared again. And then, a burst of anger at herself for loving a boy not deserving of her attention. On one eventful day, two and a half weeks since Jared had disappeared from life at school, for the first time in the 11 years she had been infatuated with Mr. Cameron, Kim began to question whether she should move on and find another man, one who deserved her attention.

And she would have done so, if it hadn't been for the next day at school.


	2. The Walk of Hell

_Just a note: I'm keeping the whole shifting and pack information out of the way for now. But don't worry, it'll come up eventually! :)_

**Disclaimer: As usual, all characters belong to Stephenie Meyer.**

**The Walk of Hell**_Jared_

There it was. Forks High School, school for all regular La Push kids.

Prison, however, for himself and Paul. And for everyone else like him.

"Fuck, man…" grumbled Paul. "I can't do this. Too many people, too many scents. Not to mention, the food tastes like bland shit." The pair was trudging to school, shoulders slunk down, for the first time in three weeks since they had left. Sam and the council claimed to the school that it had been "tribal business." They knew otherwise, though.

Paul was now listing his complaints about returning to school, one by one, much to Jared's dismay. Jared growled softly, feeling his temper slowly flare, the prickling feeling in his stomach when he was close to exploding beginning to smolder. While Jared had grown used to Paul's terrible temper over the past few weeks, it was still incredibly difficult to resist slapping the boy multiple times in the face. Paul could be a good buddy and crack hilarious jokes at times, but he was still...for a lack of a better description, _annoying as fuck. _Paul failed to notice Jared's rapid change in demeanor, and continued on his rant. "No wait, I take that back. Even Sam's shit tastes appetizing compared to cafeteria food. I'm gonna shift or something, I have to go back and-"

Finally, Jared snapped. He shoved Paul, hard, with enough strength for Paul to stumble off the sidewalk and into the road. Unhurt, however, he immediately leapt up to his feet, his eyes bright with fury, his body shaking, convulsing with ripples. "What...the...hell...was that for?" Paul snarled viciously through his clenched jaw, fists clenched.

It was moments like these that tested Jared's patience and decision-making. Option one would be to throw Paul to the ground, slugging him in the face, stomach, and unmentionables with the satisfying crunch of bones breaking. Ah yes, a fight was most desirable, to release Jared's pent-up anger at his friend.

Yet he knew how Sam would react if they were to break out into a physical fight. Chaos would most definitely ensue, with endless patrols and even worse, bans from eating Emily's mouth-watering, home-cooked muffins, spaghetti, and sandwiches. Emily's food was what Paul and Jared lived for. In fact, they had only grudgingly agreed to attend school today because she had bribed them with plates of her lasagna.

It was a bit sad, Jared had to admit, to be motivated by only the promise of meals. Nonetheless, he knew what would happen to all of them and the council if he and Paul went too far.

So that left option two, to go, as Paul liked to call it, "the sissy way."

Jared held his ground, slowly sucking in his breath to resist the prickling urge to throw Paul off the edge of the cliffside, as Paul heatedly stormed towards him with a dark glint in his eyes. "Hey, I'm sorry man...rough day," Jared muttered, staring Paul in the eye. Paul stopped in his step, the fire in his eyes still burning. "Let's just get to school. I'll make it up to you." A few seconds passed in a tense silence, Paul's eyebrows drawn together in concentration and his body still rigid with the preparation for a battle.

Then he relaxed, the tremors running through his body settling down, his burning gaze simmering down. Jared inhaled in relief. Phew. Crisis avoided. "Fine," Paul grumbled, slightly peeved but his words not furious like before, "I'm sorry too, bro." Jared opened his mouth to reply, but his friend cut him off quickly with a mischievous grin. "But you're giving me half of your lasagna." Paul doubled over with laughter upon seeing Jared's facial expression.

_Unbelievable_. Jared took this opportunity to swat Paul in the shoulder, not as hard as he would have wanted to, but still with enough power that it probably hurt. Or at least, he hoped. Paul snorted, straightened up his posture, and mumbled some almost unintelligible phrases about anger management issues.

Jared rolled his eyes, and the pair continued walking. In just a few minutes, they arrived at the entrance of their high school.

"Shit…" Paul swore under his breath. Jared responding by grunting in contained frustration.

Sam had already given them a heads-up about the reactions their fellow peers would give. Jared knew that he looked differently, and that the students and teachers would notice too. Shock, horror, and admiration would ensue. And the worst part was that they couldn't tell anyone why. "There will be a bunch of trash talk and rumors about the council and drugs," Sam had warned them earlier this morning, "They'll be accusing you two, me, Old Quil...everyone involved in this. But you have to deal with it."

Not to mention all the scents and drama going on inside the building. Girls' perfume, guys' cologne, sweat, lunches, you name it. People shrieking, yelling, whispering, arguing, sounds that Paul and Jared would only hear clearer than others and make their heads ache. And if they were about to lose their temper, they had to dash hundreds of feet before reaching the vicinity of the door. Closed walls and roofs always turned Jared's stomach out. That feeling of being trapped, especially if things went too far, could only be quenched by taking a run through the wide, open forest. "The living hell…" Sam had called returning to school for the first time. Yet they still had to go, in order to cover up what had happened before and prevent any snooping from going on about where Paul and he had run off to. It was vital to show that they had not indeed "vanished from life," even if all the classes were going to suck big time.

Yep. Torture was absolutely inevitable. The pair stared at the door leading to the hallways of pain for a minute, and then Jared sighed in defeat. "Let's go," he mumbled to his pal, who nodded in assent.

Taking a deep breath to calm his fluttery nerves, Jared took his first step in three weeks into the school building.


	3. The Sighting

**Three follows? You have all just made my heart happy. ^^ 3**

**Thanks to idkmybffjill1314**** and Nori'sLilTheif**** for reviewing. I really appreciate it. You guys rock. :D**

**Now, onto the story. Disclaimer: All characters belong to Stephanie Meyer, even though I wish I owned Seth Clearwater...sighs…**

**The Sighting **_Kim_

_Jared + Kim. Jared and Kim forever. Mrs. Kim Cameron. _Kim snapped out of her daze and flushed, once realizing what she had scrawled onto her science notebook. As usual, she had arrived to Ms. Khan's room earlier than everyone else, only to sit down and drift into a blissful daydream revolving around Jared. Ms. Khan probably thought Kim was working on an assignment, but she knew otherwise.

Today's fantasy had been no different than yesterday's. For the first time since, well, ever, Jared had approached her at lunch. Her heart racing when dream Jared stepped up, _hesitantly and shy_, mind you, he had flashed her a bright smile with his blindingly white, perfect teeth. And promptly, Kim had boldly invited him to sit with her, to which he gracefully accepted. Allison, whom Kim usually joined for lunch, was to her delight, absent from the daydream. Which meant that Jared and she could chat together, alone, over a romantic meal. Ah, bliss.

To be completely honest, Kim knew that she should give up wishing for Jared. He would probably never notice her, and that would probably be okay, even if she would probably sink into a chasm of depression if she turned thirty and was still not Mrs. Cameron. A little burst of disgusted anger at her sappy weakness arose. Yes, she deserved more than a stupid crush that wasn't even reciprocated, more than a nonexistent relationship that made her a pathetic 13-year-old girl. Jared was not the world, no, and she needed to move on. But in the meantime, there was nothing wrong at all with daydreaming about a physically, mentally, and emotionally attractive teenage boy. As long as she remembered not to be disappointed when her dreams stayed in her dreams and to in reality, give up on her crush, there was nothing wrong at all. So she squashed that inner conscience, screaming at her to stop fantasizing.

Kim heard the front door open, but she didn't turn to see who else had arrived. She glanced at the clock, and, noting that there were ten minutes before class started, she delved into Jared Land again and continued where they had left off. _"So Kim…" he murmured, a playful smirk creeping onto his face, "Would you mind if I did this?" I shivered slightly, out of anticipation, as he turned his body to face me and slid his warm hand onto my cheek, which immediately turned the color of beet root. Laughing softly and staring into my eyes with an adoring chocolate gaze, Jared wrapped his other free arm around my waist, grazing his gentle hand against my hip. Slowly, he tugged me close to him, until I was flush against his sturdy chest. "You don't know how long I've waited for you, Kim…" he mumbled barely audibly, his own face reddening like mine as his eyes roamed over my entire face, a kind of awed light in his face despite the averageness of my features. "You're so beautiful," he whispered. Then he pressed his lips against mine, chuckling lightly to himself. Time seemed to slow, and everyone else in the cafeteria, except for us, vanished, as he placed both his hands on the side of my face and kissed me even harder. It was heaven, absolute heaven, drowning in Jared's kiss. We would never stop...not if-_

WHAM!

Startled out of her daydream by the loud whack on the desk behind her and the quiet cussing that followed it, Kim heard a low, husky "Ah, I'm sorry. Didn't mean to scare you." About to turn around to see who the mystery man was, Kim was suddenly struck by a electrifying realization. _Wait a second...the desk behind me has been empty for the past three weeks, and that is because…_

Jared Cameron.

An orchestra playing the suspenseful horror film music began their composition as she slowly grasped the truth that Jared had returned to school. Kim's heartbeat immediately skyrocketed, and she felt her face heating up like the sun. _Oh. My. Freaking. God. Jared's here. _Panic suddenly surged through her cold veins, heating up her the jumble of nerves in her stomach with adrenaline. _What do I say? Think, Kim, THINK! _

But before she could even begin brainstorming a witty remark to Jared, Kim's body acted on its own accord. Apparently it had been pining for Jared all this time as well. Her body-not Kim-turned around so that she was facing Jared's desk. _Here we go…_

He glanced up from his seat to meet her expectant gaze and reddened face. "Sorry, I'm such an-" He stopped mid sentence, his words cut off as his jaw dropped and hung slack. It took a moment for Kim to realize what was happening.

Jared. Was. Staring. At. Her. And not the other way around.

Staring was an understatement. His mouth gaping, his dark brown eyes, the color of melted chocolate, bulged as they slowly traveled all over her face, shock, even awe in his gaze. he slowly shut his mouth, but continued his inspection of Kim, who was apparently now a fascinating specimen. His gaze slipped downward, down to Kim's waist, and Kim's face reddened even more. As if it wasn't already a tomato. Despite her self-proclaimed ungraceful curves, it didn't seem that way to Jared. If anything, his eyes widened even more and a sort of...desire, was it?….made its way to Jared, as his eyes darkened slightly and he bit his lip. _Was he...blushing because of her? _Ridiculous. But nonetheless, he continued to scrutinize her, his gaze devouring every inch of her plain body.

And Kim was doing the same to Jared. In the few weeks that he had been absent, he had certainly changed quite a bit. What used to be long hair like most of the boys living on the reservation now was a short buzz cut, spiky and military-style. His body, now tanner than it had been before, had somehow grown miraculously. He wore a tank top, despite the chilly weather of February, which showed off the now bulging muscles of his arms, as well as the flex of his toned stomach under the tight shirt. Barely fitting in the chair now, he appeared to had shot up half a foot since Kim last saw him. Also daunting was the circular tribal tattoo on his bicep, filled with intricate designs, and the pulsing heat radiating from him. Even from a foot away, Kim could feel the warmth rolling off him like a heater. Short-haired, muscular, and...hot. Yes, both temperature and appearance-wise. The Jared she knew and loved was wiry and athletic, with long braids draping his shoulders. But now, he had somehow morphed into a creature worthy of the Hulk's protege, a body-builder. Jared used to be attractive but now he was just…

_Sexy. _Jared's face had also appeared to age with his body. His strong jaw that used to be pulled up now was tightened and sagged downwards, a kind of weary exhaustion in his eyes, his mature stature much unlike the mischievous, humor-filled facade he used to display. Beard stubble framed his spectacular face along his chin, and Kim had to resist the urge to caress it with her hand. And his body was slumped slightly forwards-whether it was due to a lack of space in the desk or from tiredness, Kim could not tell. He looked like a twenty-five year old, yet she simply found him even more beautiful than she ever dreamed was possible. Who would have known, that mature and buff Jared, Jared the _man,_ not the boy, was so gorgeous?

Back to the present. After several painstakingly long moments of awkwardness and Kim thinking _What the fuck?_, Jared returned his face to the eye level of Kim. "Y-your name…" he stammered, face rosy and words scrambled. His face flushed even darker. "Kim?"

"Um...yeah…" she replied hesitantly. His eyes returned from bugger size to a normal appearance, and softened. Adoration warmed his stare and a dreamy smile drifted onto his face, tugging the corner of his perfect lips up and making Kim's stomach drop. "I'm Jared."

At this Kim frowned slightly. "I know." A bit offended, she wondered if they were really that distant. They had talked together in class before. Earlier this year, before Jared had left, they had even worked on a partner project before. _Am I really that invisible to him? _Truthfully, Kim wasn't that surprised...just a bit disappointed. _But what did you expect?_

Suddenly, Jared's entire demeanor shifted. His eyes enlarged with horror and his beaming smile flipped upside down. "No! No, that's not my name...I mean it is my name, but I didn't just say that if it makes you upset. D-don't be upset please...um...I...I...didn't mean to make you annoyed! I'm sorry, so sorry...don't be angry at me please. I'll do anything, I swear…." His words rushed out all at once, and her mouth dropped. Twisted with agony, Jared's eyebrows were drawn together in distress. In all of Kim's life, she had _never, ever _heard Jared so frantic and dismayed before. And never, had he apologized to her, especially over something as minor as his introduction.

And then it hit Kim. Jared was nervous. Nervous around her, because of her.

But why?

It didn't make any sense. Never before had Jared acted so tongue-twisted around her. Never before, had an interaction as intense as this had been exchanged between them. Completely weird.

Jared and Kim continued to stare into each others eyes, each willing each other to say something to break the awkward silence, until they were interrupted by the bell, signaling the start of school. Jared's face still lowered with shame, Kim muttered a quick "It's ok." And just like that, his face lit up and a goofy grin replaced his guilty expression. "Cool…" he breathed, the lilt of his voice revealing the relief.

It was too much. His newfound interest in her, sensitivity to her emotions, captivation of her average looks. Kim whipped around to face her own desk and slid down until her head was buried in her arms. Breathless, shocked, and confused, she took a minute to take deep breaths to steady her heart, which after her conversation with Jared, was sprinting a marathon. She didn't understand what had gone on, why Jared was acting so...in love with her. At the same time, a small part of Kim was...thrilled. Ecstatic that her dreams had finally become reality.

**So, what do you think? Was their meeting intense or what? Will Kim accept Jared quickly into her life or give him a hard time?**

**Let me know if there are any "first person" and "third person" mix-ups. I wanted to write this fanfic in third person, but I found myself accidentally slipping into first person in the middle of this chapter. I think I caught all the mistakes, but if you find one, please let me now. (*blink blink pretty pretty please?)**

**Thanks for reading! You are all the best. :D**


	4. Gravity

**Note: Throughout the next few chapters, I might suggest shifting and the whole pack shebang but I won't really go into depth or specific info until later. So any mentioning of that will be kind of unclear.**

**This chapter will be longer than usual, because most of it is Jared reflecting on the last chapter.**

**Disclaimer: As usual, the Twilight series and characters all belong to Stephenie Meyer. But just you wait, someday Seth will be mine. I just got to believe…**

**Gravity** _Jared_

Jared knew he looked like an idiot.

But at the same time, he couldn't help it. A heavenly creature, deity, girl, whatever you called the most beautiful living thing to ever exist, was currently sitting in the desk in front of him in science class. So it was inevitable for him, of course, to forgo academics for the moment in order to check her out, if not study all her features until they were ingrained in his brain as mental images for eternity. A thousand thoughts, all revolving around Kim and her otherworldly beauty, set off like firecrackers through his head as he tried to grasp that this was not a dream and that the queen in front of him was real.

Meticulously jotting down notes, Kim's face was still slightly flushed, adorably pink, which Jared hoped was from the intensity of their earlier encounter. He hoped so, because he was now close to bouncing off the walls from his newfound fascination, desire, and adoration for her. Truly, she was..._breath-taking._

That walk through the hallways had been, for a lack of a better work, _absolute hell._ Paul's class had been near the front of the school entrance-lucky for him-and he had been able to escape all the stares momentarily. Bading Jared adieu with a classy flipping-off and the trademark Lahote smirk, he had wished Jared "well." _"Have fun, stupid!" _Being the cool, responsible, and mature one of the pair, Jared had responded by simply rolling his eyes.

And then his troubles had began. As he had continued to trudge through the hallway to the end, where his class was "conveniently" located, Jared had received mixed reactions of shock, flirtation, and revulsion. Tara Simmons and her clique of popular girls ogling at him, a few fluttering their eyelashes disgustedly. The friendly nerds, including Randy and Jake, blinking a few times in utter amazement, then turning their backs as so to fiddle with their locks and pretend nothing had happened. The jocks, people Jared used to call his buddies but probably would no longer, gaping unabashedly and the wide receiver of the school football team, Scott, nodding in approval. Ha, as if Sam would ever let Jared return to the team as quarterback after _this._ Jared had blatantly given his old friends no acknowledgement and merely walked by without a greeting or such. And worst of all had been the sounds of the jaws dropping open with loud, harsh whispers. _"Oh my effin god...Jared is so hot…" "Dude, I bet he's on drugs now…" "Man those two weeks must have been something, eh guys?" _Jared had forced himself to resist the urge to pummel those twerps and dent a few lockers in the process.

After a few more troops of assholes, Jared had finally reached a place he thought he would never call salvation: science class with Ms. Khan. It wasn't that he hated Ms. Khan or science in particular...it was more like he felt that it was more important to know how to start a fire than what type of reaction and molecular compounds it included. But for now, it was important to return to school life and act as normal as possible.

Well, as normal as possible for Jared now.

Sucking in a deep breath to calm his nerves, Jared had been infinitely grateful that he had arrived to school early, and that almost no one would be in the classroom. Time to pull himself together and prepare for the long day ahead of him.

He had been surprised by the reaction, science pun not intended, when he opened the door and stepped in. Ms. Khan had simply glanced up, raised her eyebrows in slight shock, then returned to rapidly grading her papers. _Relief._ Proceeding to walk to his desk, which was located near the back of the classroom-thank God-Jared had noticed another person, a smaller girl with flowy black hair sitting in front of him, quietly writing in her journal. She had not even glanced up when he plopped down in his seat, absent-mindedly pulling books out of his bag, only to-

WHAM!

-slap them all loudly onto the desk. "Aw, fuck it…" he had muttered harshly, cursing his lack of control for his extreme strength. It would take some time to get used to, Sam had warned Paul and him. But at that moment? Jared had wanted to smash the desk into splinters. His so-called "awesome" muscles were ruining his chance to ever fit in again.

The girl had inhaled sharply, as if she had been electrified. _Shit oh shit…_ Then she had turned around, probably to see how different he looked and to yell at him and freak out and whatever. Steeling himself for yet another shocked face, he had quickly muttered "Sorry, I'm such an-"

Holy. Shit.

All the breath rushed out of Jared's lungs, his jaw open and slack, as he had made eye contact with her. Heat surged through his stomach as he had gazed wide-eyed into the girl's eyes. Everything about him had disconnected from him in that moment, his soul detached from his body, everything he loved in life replaced by a force of gravity stronger than Earth's, one tying him to her and keeping him centered. _My everything, _he had thought, numb from ecstasy and the pull for her.

God. She had been so...so..._beautiful. _The most enrapturing thing he had ever seen in his life. Jared lost track of time and everything going on around him as had he stared at the girl. Her perfectly-shaped, pale pink lips. Her skin, russet-colored and smooth as satin. Her long, wavy eyelashes, framing her melted chocolate eyes. Her slender nose, balanced with her breathtakingly wide face and jaw-dropping, prominent cheek bones, which had been at the moment, flushed with pink and reddening even more. So freaking adorable.

And then he had continued his admiration of the heavenly creature. His eyes had slipped downwards to her waist, tracing over her soft curves, clothed by a navy sweatshirt, which Jared hoped she would take off soon to reveal her shapely arms. Her face had darkened even more, and he had almost groaned out loud for how gorgeous she was. _Damn. _Biting his lip, Jared's had felt his face redden. He still couldn't express how much he had simply wanted her in that moment, how much he wanted to kiss every single inch of her body and memorize it.

_I must be freaking her out, _Jared had suddenly realized after a while of gaping at the girl. He had returned his gaze to her alluring face, which had been the shade of ripe strawberries. They had exchanged names, softening Jared's mad desire for Kim and changing it to tender love.

That is, until the point where she became upset.

When he had introduced himself, she had dipped her head down, muttering a quick "I know," her eyes darkened with slight disappointment. And then panic had surged through Jared, freezing his veins despite his high temperature of 108 degrees Fahrenheit. _What is she mad for? Is she mad at me? Oh no, oh no, oh no. I'm going to lose it if she is. _She should not, could not, would not be annoyed, sad, or angry _ever_, especially not towards him. It had killed Jared to see her experiencing that sort of pain. Or any kind of pain.

So he had rambled on frantically, forming a scrambled apology, which had been followed by a long staring contest in which he had stared worriedly into her eyes. _What if she doesn't forgive me? Oh gods, I'm such an idiot. What is she rejects me and hates me forever? I swear, I will kill myself if she does. _Panicked thoughts had exploded in his thoughts, until she had ducked her head down and murmured, "It's ok." Then hysterical relief had swooped in and replaced his distress.

And here he was now, after class started and the whole interaction between him and her, still admiring Kim's extremely stunning features. He exhaled softly as he gaze roamed all over her body. At the moment, Kim was hunched over, scribbling in her notebook and taking diligent notes, much like him, also currently busy but with another, more important task. He licked his lips. _Mmm...gorgeous and studious. _

Kim's hair, shiny and midnight black, continuously slipped forward to hide her angelic face. As she pushed it back behind her ear, Jared was suddenly struck by the image of him placing the strands of her hair back for her, him smiling adoringly down at her and her blushing. He sighed in affection, mind you, _loudly._

All the students immediately turned to stare at Jared like he had grown four legs and a fur coat. (Little did they know that wasn't altogether false._) _Including Kim. For a few glorious seconds, Jared caught sight of Kim's cherubic face whipped towards him. He smiled stupidly. Ah, love. "Hey," he whispered. Kim ogled at him blankly, then her cheeks flushed pink and a small, herself smile tugged the corners of her lips up. "Hi," she murmured back, her head dipping downwards as her eyelashes softly brushed her face. Entranced, Jared's arm jerked forward. _Aw, damn it. _He had to pinch his arm to resist the urge to tenderly stroke her chin. Face red, Kim rotated her body back around to return to writing in her notebook.

But still, Jared craved more contact, more conversations with her. So ripping out a sheet of binder paper from his own notebook-quietly and with control this time, much like the man he was now-he took to hastily writing on it, taking his time to construct the perfect composition. Perfect…

***So as you can see, most of this chapter was flashbacks to last chapter, but in Jared's POV. I used "had, have and had been" (and words similar) to show the events were not occurring right at the moment, and normal past tense for the current events. Hope it's not too confusing.**

**Ah, I Iove Jared and Kim so much. So adorbs. Thanks for reading!**


	5. Affection & Panic

**Thanks for following and reviewing! :) Now onto Chapter 5.**

**Affection & Panic** _Kim_

Kim was floating on a cloud.

Seriously. Jared had just talked to her, for the first time in a month. Besides the weird name-introduction-confrontation situation earlier, Kim felt his intense stare on her back while she wrote notes. And yes, she enjoyed every single second of it. Of anything in the world, Kim would have never expected Jared to act above all things _interested _in her. Unnerving, yet flattering.

Upon hearing him sigh dreamily minutes ago, she had whipped her head around to face Jared and see what was going on. He had smiled distractedly, seemingly absorbed in her eyes with his unfocused stare, and had whispered a quick hello. And just like a bumbling idiot, she had awkwardly replied, immediately flushed red, and turned back around to her work. He was honestly _so_ gorgeous.

To be completely honest, a small part of Kim was doubtful and confused about Jared's strange affections. But at the same time, she couldn't help but just go along with it. Sure, she was totally shocked and overwhelmed at first, but now...she felt absolutely euphoric. More euphoric than the time she had won that poetry recital contest in seventh grade. Today, she swore, was literally her Jared Land come true, a real life fairytale. _Just go with it, _Kim thought to herself, _If you resist, you'll wake up from this dream. _Ah, that would suck big time.

Submerged in her thoughts and replaying the unusual events with Jared, Kim almost didn't notice the wad of paper tossed onto her shoulder. Without thinking, she grabbed it with two fingers before it fell to the ground and uncrumpled it, her heart stopping for a moment when she finally glanced down and read the words.

_Hey Kim. How ya doing? -Jared_

A goofy smile suddenly burst across Kim's face. She knew that she looked like a slap-happy fool, especially by the quizzical look Ms. Khan shot her, but she was literally..._high_ on interacting with Jared. It was like she had been deprived of Jared for so long that now, it was like heaven. So she picked her pencil and wrote onto the back, _I'm good. You?, _in hopes of engaging in a conversation. She tossed it casually over her shoulder, hoping she didn't misjudge her aim.

Kim received a reply quickly. _Absolutely swell. Surviving Ms. Khan's lecture?_

_Getting by. It's a process. _She hoped that was a witty enough remark.

She heard Jared's soft, husky laugh, gentle yet somehow gorgeous, and shivered slightly. Could a laugh even be gorgeous? Maybe for certain gods. _Haha. Hey, but you're so smart, you don't even need to pay attention in class._

She blushed. _Thanks. _Jared Heaven, indeed. Kim was literally numb with pure delight from amicably "chatting" with Jared Cameron. Then without thinking, Kim asked a question she had been curious about for a while. _Hey, why are you talking to me anyways?_

It took about a minute for Jared to reply. When she glanced over her shoulder to see what was the hold-up, she noticed that his lips were puckered slightly with confusion, his forehead creased with stress. Strange.

_What do you mean?_

_Well, _she swallowed, hoping it wouldn't discourage Jared from continuing to pass notes with her, because honestly, it was a nice alternative to lectures about chemistry, _we usually don't chat much in general. So why now?_

And when she looked back again, she saw a small smile, grow on his face. Jared glanced up from his writing to see Kim staring at him expectantly. A smirk stretched his lips wide, and she whipped her head back around to her desk, flushing slightly. This time, the note came sailing back fast. _'Cause you're so beautiful._

And just like that, all the air rushed out of Kim's lungs.

In Lovey-Dovey Kim's place, Rational Kim appeared and slayed the joy in Kim, as well as arousing feelings of alarm. And so she snapped out of Jared Euphoria. _Oh my God, oh my God, oh my freaking God. Think Kim, think. It doesn't make any freaking sense at all. It's been three weeks since Jared left. And once he returns, he's suddenly enraptured by me. Why? _At this realization, the giddiness Kim felt exploded in a poof, like a fairy had waved her wand and sucked out all the bliss, and vanished. It made absolutely no sense. _I'm such an idiot. Writing notes, flirting...ugh! _It had been _so _nice interacting with Jared but...why was it even happening?

She mentally groaned, and laid her head on the table. Leave it to Kim to accept something entirely unexplainable and go with it.

Jared cleared his throat, probably noticing her sudden change in demeanor, she noted. "Um...Kim, you okay?" he inquired, his chair scraping the floor while he stood up to walk over to her. Her heartbeat immediately skyrocketed-whether it was from panic or exhilaration from the approaching proximity of Mr. Cameron, she could not tell. _Oh God, oh God...Breathe Kim, breathe. _But to Kim's great relief, the bell rang just before Jared could arrive at her desk. And that was her cue to hastily grab her bag and sprint for the door, to escape the hell hole of conflicting feelings, despite Jared's shouts of protest.

"Wait! Wait...oh fuck," Jared yelled after her disappearing figure as she hurtled through the crowd and down the hallways in panic. She had to get anywhere, just away from Jared for the moment, to think it all over and calm down. Screw her next class period. She had greater problems to worry about. "I'm sorry! What did I do? Please?" Daring enough to sneak a glance behind her shoulder, Kim gaped at the sight of Jared shooting after her like a bullet, face contorted with worry and confusion, chest heaving with ragged breaths.

And her brain went into emotional overdrive. So she broke into a straight-out sprint, headed straight for the bathroom. Her form vanished through the doorway, and she let out a sigh just as the door banged shut. The other girls turned to ogle at her in confusion at the sight of a hyperventilated, red-faced student. But honestly, all she could think was how relieved she was.

Only seconds after, a loud slam on the door startled Kim. Yep, Jared. She groaned. "I'm so, so sorry Kim...God, I'm such an idiot...tell me what I did wrong...please, please!" Everyone in the bathroom continued to stare at Kim in shock, a few of their eyes narrowing in suspicion, contemplating why a popular guy like Jared was shouting at a regular girl like her in desperation. In response, she headed for the nearest bathroom stall, setting her bags down and trying to ignore Jared's pleads. And after a few minutes of Jared's continual begging, there was silence, and heavy footsteps leading away from the bathroom as well as Jared's barely audible swears.

_What. The. Fuck. _Kim shut her eyes in an effort to slow her heart rate and control her labored breathing. It was too much. The way Jared had first stared into her eyes, then followed by his sudden creeper-like interest in her. How stunned yet happy she had been at first, then panicked when she finally grasped the absurdity of the situation. Torn between her emotions even now, Kim felt her adrenaline pumping from the race to the bathroom and her shock at Jared, but for some reason, still pictured Jared's godlike, tan face. How warm his chocolate eyes had been. His face full of...Kim mentally slapped herself. Her emotions were literally at war with each other. Kim didn't know how to feel, whether to be ecstatic that Jared seemed to be somewhat infatuated if not obsessive with her, or freaked out enough to file a restraining order. She was leaning towards the second option.

But weirdest of all was that despite her now mixed feelings towards Jared, she felt a strange emptiness in her gut once he had left. It had started the moment they had begun their unusual staring contest once they met in the classroom, an urge to simply be in his presence. Like she had a pull towards him, an irresistible urge to be near him, in his embrace, kissing his...Again, Kim slapped herself, but this time physically on her face to clear up her muddle of thoughts. _Jared is hot. Ugh! I mean, creepy. What a stalker. A completely sexy stalker. Oh my freaking God, Kim, make up your mind! _She could have sworn her brain, besides the rest of her body, was also sweating from all the excitement.

In short, Kim didn't know whether to run back and continue chatting it up with Jared, scream with frustration, or go to the cops. She guessed she wouldn't figure it out anytime soon. So she inhaled deeply, picked up her bag, and marched out the bathroom towards her next class.

Good thing it was free period. No one would notice that she was late, and best of all, she wouldn't see Jared until tomorrow for odd block. Plenty of time to brood over what had happened and try to formulate a logical explanation. It probably wouldn't be too complicated, she reassured herself. There would be a reason for Jared's actions. A sensible reason.

But she knew deep down, there was more to it than she thought now.

**Yep, Kim is torn. That's kind of how I imagine imprinting (or more specifically, Seth imprinting on me…*sighs and stares off into the distance…). A pull to be near your imprinter, ecstacy at returned affections, but panic at the literally obsessive stalking.**

**More updates coming up soon. Thanks so much for reading! I appreciate every one of you all. (Review please?) **


	6. Blow's Aftermath

**Thanks for reading, reviewing, and following! Here now is Jared's opinion. Enjoy. :D**

**Disclaimer: The Twilight series is all Stephenie Meyer's.**

**Blow's Aftermath **_Jared_

Jared moodily stabbed at his food with his plastic fork. Unable to take the forcefulness of the hand holding it, the pathetic excuse for a pitchfork snapped in hate. Glancing downwards at the white splinters in his hand, Jared threw it down onto the table. Whatever. It wasn't like he had an appetite anyways.

_The world is stupid. Everyone is stupid. Paul is stupid. I'm stupid. I hate the world, I hate everyone, I hate Paul..fuck it, I even hate-_

"Hey man, if you're not gonna eat that, I will...just sayin', ya know?"

Startled out of his silent sulking, Jared rolled his eyes in response to Paul's taunting, which was as usual, delivered with the stupid smirk on his stupid face. Silently reminding himself that time was not to be wasted on idiots, especially ones snickering at his situation like an immature teenage boy, Jared simply grumbled, "Shut it." This, however, only made Paul laugh harder.

So Jared took the opportunity to kick Paul, _hard, _in the shin, while Paul snorted. Yeah, it probably didn't hurt, but it would be nice for him to pretend for it to. Jared needed some way to release his pent-up fury at himself. While he did desire to kick Paul in certain unmentionable places, he resisted the temptation. What a man.

The pair was sitting in the cafeteria at a table in the corner, having gravitated to "the loner corner" after piling as much food as possible without attracting too many stares from the cafeteria ladies and classmates onto their trays. Paul, of course, had dug into his rations immediately, scarfing down his food in no time at all, most likely succeeding in breaking a world record in speed eating.

Not to mention that they had gotten some stares from their classmates. Jared was well aware that his old pals, the jocks, were beginning to suspect something strange going on with him and Paul, considering their new ripped (not to be arrogant, but hey, Jared had to admit he looked pretty good) bodies, change in temperature, and ignoring of Scott and the others. And it probably also looked pretty weird that he and Paul seemed to be all "buddy-buddy" now, considering that they had never really been close friends in the first place. Jared felt a shudder course through his back at the thought of all the gossip that would be likely to occur, if it hadn't already. _Cue the swirling rumors…_ Sam had advised them against socializing too much with their friends. Some nosy questions, slips of the tongue here and there, and their secret would be out. And that would be absolutely catastrophic.

So here he was now, with Paul at their new place in the cafeteria. And while Paul was still being annoying as fuck, bothering Jared because of Jared's moodiness and apparent refusal to eat anything, Jared was beginning to consider telling his friend exactly why he was being so grumpy and silent at lunch today, brooding quietly and darkly like he was considering conspiracy. People at school made Paul out to be kind of an asshole, but after everything they had been through together, Jared knew better. He recognized that somewhere, deep, deep, _deep _down in Paul's miniscule, _if even existent_ brain was a guy who had a good heart and cared about others.

Even if the existence of that nice guy was only Jared's unproven theory.

And he also knew that Paul would actually listen and attempt to offer genuine advice (even if it were to be obnoxious and rude), if Jared were to vent all his confusion and frustration to him about _her. _Because honestly? He needed to talk to someone about Kim and how he had mortally screwed it up with her earlier today before he exploded from self-hatred, over-thinking, and fury. It was gnawing away at his insides, the aggravation destroying his soul.

A pep talk it was.

"Hey bro?" Jared muttered, just as Paul dramatically whipped his head up and to the side from where he was gazing at his empty food tray longingly and gasped noisily. What else did he expect? _Melodramatic dick. _"Oh my lord! The depressed Jererd Cameroon speaks to thyself!" Paul squeaked in a lousy impression of a Southern lady, being the disgusting git he was. "And how, I must inquire, may I be so humble to help thou?"

Jared's answer was curt. "I need your advice." He also cringed a bit, anticipating Paul's bitingly annoying comments.

"Oh, and what for, dearie?" Yep. Still doing the accent.

"Drop the accent, will you? Girl stuff."

Paul nodded sympathetically, but in mock empathy. "Ohhh I see. Need to quench those raging hormones, eh? Well you could always ask my cousin Kate even though she's married and has three kids and-"

"The fuck, man! No!" Jared snapped, bringing his fist down on the table in a fit of rage. And of course, everyone _had to_ around to stare at the arguing boys. _Jerks. _In his head, Jared silently counted to ten, praying not to break. No use losing his temper in here. He took a deep breath, hoping to mitigate the burning, prickling sensation in his stomach, and lowered his voice. "Not that girl stuff," he coughed, clearing his throat in emphasis, thus gaining the attention of Lahote, who was, for the love of God, _still _smirking. "There's this girl in my science class," he paused, wondering whether he should tell Paul or not. _Well there's no going back now._ He picked up where he left off. "Her name is Kim Connweller…like…I don't know man…I saw her and then…" Jared struggled to find to right words to express what had happened between him and Kim in the morning. "...like Sam and Emily, you know."

Immediately, Paul's overconfident, bratty face changed to one of mild concern and understanding. Several thoughts flashed across his face. "And?" he cautiously questioned, sensing his friend's mercurial mood.

Jared sighed and plonked his head down on the table, "...I fucked it up with her," lifting up his head to glance at his troubled buddy, just to add an afterthought, "and she probably thinks I'm a lunatic now."

"How so, man?"

He cleared his throat. _Here goes nothing. _"After we first saw each other in the morning, it was kinda awkward I guess, the whole 'stare-into-eyes-love' scenario, the beginning. And then she started to like it I think...we started passing notes, cute, casual stuff, you know. And she was really embarrassed and adorable at first but after one of my notes, she like…freaked out," The rest of Jared's words came in a heated rush. "The bell rang and she just bolted for the door and into the girl's bathroom, and I was chasing after her but she just didn't stop. And she didn't come out. So now she thinks I'm crazy and stupid and a creeper and she's going to hate me forever and I'm gonna die and I have no idea what the fu-"

"Okay, okay, okay," Paul interjected, resting his hand on Jared's back, which was slumped onto the cafeteria table, heaving with rasping breaths. "Besides the whole eye-staring, love at first sight thing...what did you exactly write on the note to make her exactly...you know, panic?"

"...I told her she was beautiful." Paul eyebrows furrowed, and he opened his mouth to say something right before Jared cut him off. "I know, I know...I went too fast. I'm an idiot. And that's my only class with her for even block. The next time I'm gonna see her is tomorrow fifth period."

Dread and pain flamed in Jared's gut. The fires of negative emotions licked at his insides. Agony that he had most likely ruined all chances of getting _her. _Regret for that one note. And anger, anger at the world, his classmates, his stupid genes, everything. He groaned out loud in pure discouragement and frustration.

Paul was silent. Probably thinking over everything Jared had just told him, contemplating what to say to calm Jared's butt down without igniting yet another freak-out moment. "Maybe you should...I don't know, apologize?" At this, Jared turned to cock his head at Paul, who hesitantly met his eyes and nervously continued. "Say something like how everyone's been treating you like an alien since you came back to school and how you've never really talked to her before but since she's so nice to you that she makes you feel like you belong and that you were just-" Jared cut him off before he could finish his rambling, realizing that the dumb fuck had a point. _Hey...that might work!_

"Wait a sec. You're right!" Jared burst out joyfully. "You_ are_ right!" He threw his arms around his pal, who stiffened and then relaxed into the embrace. Jared went on, practically bubbling with relief. "Perfect! And then she'll forgive me and we'll be okay again."

His friend rolled his eyes in response. "Well it was kind of an obvious solution. Plus," Paul added, a smirk blooming on his lips once again, "I knew I was always the brains of the group." Jared narrowed his eyes jokingly, right as the bell signaling the end of lunch began.

Jared snorted. "Sure. Whatever. Thanks man." He slapped Lahote on the back, who chortled at this. Slipping his tray onto the counter and grabbing his bag, Jared proceeding to sprint to his fourth period class with extreme vigor (though he would have ran with even more energy if Kim had been in that class) and a goofy smile on his face. He could have sworn he heard Paul offhandedly mutter, "Fucking imprinting...jeez…" But to be honest, he could care less.

He was preoccupied with planning his upcoming conversation tomorrow with Kim that would make everything right. Write an apology note about feeling like a loner and being friendless, blah, blah, blah...and then most momentarily, striking up a companionship with Kim. Hope surged through Jared's veins, euphoria lighting his skin on fire with thrill. Ah, the emotions of imprinting. Everything would be okay again. He and Kim would be good. Life would go on.

The world wasn't really that stupid, he admitted to himself. No more stupid than Paul, at least.

**And the imprinting is officially announced! (...but not explained...teehee!)**

***Announcer's voice comes on.**

_**Jared and Kim's confrontation is quickly approaching. Will he mess up? Will Kim accept the apology? How will it go down? The whole show down coming up...SOON!**_

_*****_**Back to me now.**

**I like reviews. A lot. Almost as much as Seth. But seriously, thank you lovelies for checking my fan fic out. Loves!**


	7. Dreams and Thoughts

**Disclaimer: The Twilight Saga does not belong to me.**

**Dreams and Thoughts **_Kim_

To say today was pretty crappy was an understatement.

It was downright shitty and scary, but flattering at the same time. And that was the most frightening part-that Kim enjoyed Jared's newfound fascination and scrutinization of her.

At the moment, Kim was laying on top of her pillows on her bed, stressed and brooding, even though for the first time in months, there was no upcoming test that she could think of. Ironic that when she finally received a break from school work, something else came up to claim her sanity.

Sigh. The life of a teenage girl.

The morning had been so unrealistic, it was worthy of being movie scene. Both Jared and Paul had apparently returned from the dead after three weeks-ripped and huge, as well as being freaking sexy (What? It wasn't a crime to stare at Jared's hot body.). And as if that hadn't been weird enough, Jared's temperature had seemed to gone up, with heat literally radiating off him in waves.

Not to mention, after that exceptionally awkward staring contest, he had ogled at her the _entire_ science class, for heaven's sake. And then they had passed silly notes, in Kim's lovesick drowse, followed by Kim's realization of the absurdity of the situation and subsequent flailing-screaming-calling 911 panic attack.

Okay, so maybe she didn't get _that_ worked up. But as of now? She felt as if her head were about to explode from all the _what-the-freaking-hell-is-going-on-this-makes-no-sense-related _thoughts_._

The rest of yesterday had passed in a blur after the morning, her memories of all other classes blending into one. To be honest, she didn't quite remember anything else significant besides that interaction with Jared. She hadn't seen him or Paul any other time-thank God, only hearing gossip in the hallways. "_Did you see them?" "They're so, so hot!" "Dude, do you think it's drugs?" "Heard it has something to do with Sam." _Kim had listened to all of her classmate's speculation, most ridiculous, but had ended up with no credible knowledge. Drugs, Sam Uley, Billy Black, aliens...every story possible had been created. It seemed that Jared and Paul's change was a mystery to everyone.

Allison wasn't at school that day, so Kim contended to sitting in the library attempting to read a book on Quileute legends...the stories about Taha Aki, shapeshifting werewolves, all the other stories she and her friends on the reservation heard as young children. Since a young age, Kim had loved the idea of the tribe's protectors, especially the part about wolves. Even now, when she knew that the legends were merely a foolish fantasy, she was still captivated by the mysterious wolves. How beautiful, intelligent, and strong they were, their packs, the calm, posed adults, energetic juveniles, and adorable cubs! Way cooler than your average dalmatian.

But the reading about her favorite animal had still translated into meaningless gibberish in her brain.

While walking home as usual, her thoughts had also been preoccupied with Jared and why he would look and act so different. During dinner, her parents had even noticed her unusual behavior, which was remarkably quiet, even for herself. _"Kim honey, did something happen at school today?" _However, Kim was in no way leaning towards telling her parents anything about the whole deal. Maybe a little while later…but definitely not until she talked to Allison and figured out some more information. Premature freaking out was illegal to her. _"Just a long day, Mom. I'm fine."_

After completing her homework, she had plopped down on her bed, grasping the last note that Jared had sent her and she had inadvertently shoved into her pocket, feeling a need to hold onto anything Jared touched. Despite the creepiness of it, it was soothing to her inner ego that had pined for King Cameron for so long.

And now it was already 12, yet Kim was still thinking everything over.

Staring up at the ceiling, which Kim had plastered months ago with her drawings of wolf silhouettes, she considered the many reasons why Jared would act so peculiarly. Uncrumpling the paper, she stared at the note. _'Cause you're so beautiful. _She shivered from the memory of talking to and passing notes with Jared, how melodious and throaty his voice had been. The surge of pleasure that had coursed through her, followed by a sudden realization that his words were unprecedented. Why on earth would he act so upset when she

At the same time, she mentally ran through the possibilities of why he even wrote that note. Had she gone through plastic surgery? Nope. Designer clothing? Uh-uh. Naturally beautiful? Hell no. She wasn't absolutely hideous-quite decent, if she did say so herself-but definitely no Maisy or Hannah. So no, it was not her.

Then maybe...maybe one of Jared's buddies-most likely the school jerk, Scott-had somehow convinced Jared to act infatuated with her. For some reason, maybe the jocks found it amusing to see girls who were out of their league act flustered around them.

But she had quickly ruled that one out. Unrealistic, as it didn't seem that Jared's content at chatting with her and horror at her fear and sadness had been acting. Not to mention, she had known him since kindergarten. Always, he had been a sweetheart, friendly to everyone. In fact, that was one of the reasons for Kim's immense affection for him.

Exhausted from all the thinking, Kim leaned over and grabbed the sketchbook and pencil that usually lay on the nightstand next to her bed. While she wasn't the most skilled artist, she had read so many books about wolves and looked at so many pictures that she found herself randomly sketching a wolf, without even thinking about it. Glancing down, she saw that the drawing was a wolf's face. Head lowered, with narrowed, pale eyes, as if they were staring darkly into the soul, and a grim, downwards-facing expression. Ominous, as if warning Kim of something…but what?

All these assumptions and guesses weren't going to get her anywhere. Ripping the paper off the book and placing it on the pillow next to her head, Kim reached over to her nightstand and switched off the lamp. With a heavy yawn of exhaustion and defeat, she quickly wriggled into her sweats and curled into a ball under the blankets.

"I'll just ask Allison tomorrow. She'll know what to do,"Kim murmured softly to herself as she drifted off to blackness.

**May 4th Update: So this is the chapter that I put in between Chapter 6 and the former Chapter 7, which is now Chapter 8. **

**Thanks for reviewing and reading guys! :)**


	8. Post-Antebellum

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Twilight Franchise, Hawaii Five-0, or Minecraft. However, Allison and the teachers are characters that I created.**

***sighs...the disclaimers that I include when referencing pop culture.**

**Post-Antebellum **_Kim_

"Mr. Waters is such a lazy butthead."

"I feel you. Probably playing Minecraft with the principal and other teachers."

At the moment, Kim and her best friend, Allison, were groaning about school, parents, work, and everything else that was the bane of a teenager's existence in the cafeteria, the day after the Jared issue. It was a nice distraction from him, whom she had been so relieved that she wouldn't have to see until after lunch today, which was rapidly approaching. And that was what she had been freaking out about over a few minutes ago with Allison, who had taken over the role of therapist.

Allison and she hadn't really been ultra close friends until this year. But due to sharing a whopping five of their classes together for the first time since-well, _ever-_their unbreakable bond had been formed. Since working together on that Social Studies diagram together (which they managed to obtain an awe-worthy B on, due to attempting to watch reruns of Hawaii Five-0 while working), they had been absolutely inseparable.

And with Allison's perky, bold and sweet nature, Kim knew she could trust her pal with all the confusion with the Jared issue. Her friend knew too well of Kim's crush, borderline obsession, on Mr. Cameron Sexy Pants. Of course, after she had vented her mixed feelings concerning the unusually flattering and frightening Jared scenario to Allison, Allison had reacted with her usual no nonsense, humorous attitude, succeeding in calming Kim down and reassuring her.

Kim had begun by pouring all her panicked thoughts out. _"What if the FBI hired him to stare at the first girl he saw at school? What if he's going to stalk me? Sounds like stalking...Oh God, Allison, why is he acting so freaking weird? It doesn't make any sense! I can't handle it!" _Allison, however, had responded calmly to Kim's frantic reasoning. _"Sounds like he's finally noticing the princess that's been in front of him all his life, dearie." _She had had a good chuckle at that, despite Kim's annoyance-_"Not funny, Ally"-_followed by some simple but wise words: "Just let it play out."

And, well, Kim had to agree. Sure, yesterday morning interaction had been absolutely creepy and strange. But honestly, there wasn't anything to do in the moment except wait for more to come. After all, how bad could it be? And in the situation if Jared started acting even more like a stalker…

Well, she could always go to the cops and get that restraining order.

Allison had also reminded Kim to watch out for hormonal teenage boys, and then finally suggested an easy solution to the staring: to just pretend nothing was going on.

Also a good idea, but not one in particular Kim wanted to choose. Because truthfully? She had to admit that she kind of liked Jared's attention. After years of unrequited obsessiveness, it was soothing to her inner fangirl. Not to mention, since this morning, Kim had felt this weird tug in her gut to just be in his presence. Like she was incomplete, empty without him being near.

Eh. Probably a side-effect of crushing on someone for a lifetime.

But no matter what happened, she had still promised Allison she would be careful around Jared until an explanation was obtained. Act nonchalant, like nothing was happening, till he got the message that his actions were totally stalkerish and unnatural. Play cool in the meantime, treat him politely as anyone would...just don't submit to his actions.

Because truly, despite her undeniable attraction to Jared, the last thing Kim really wanted to deal with was a horny creeper. And if it did get to that, then she would most definitely employ those three years of karate lessons she had taken in elementary school. Simple as that.

And on that note, they were now exchanging details of their hectic school lives, the Jared situation behind them. The bell rang, interrupting Kim and Allison's howling laughter while contemplating how much money the La Push teachers earned from secret Minecraft playing careers.

"Don't freak out, honey! It's gonna be alright," Allison reassured Kim one more time, who giggled slightly at this. Allison was seriously the best friend a girl could have. Grabbing her tray, she stood up and walked over to the trash counter, flashing Kim a beaming grin.

"I know, I know, Al," Kim laughed, waving a hand in farewell to her friend. Leave it to Allison to cheer her up when she felt out of it. Especially after this morning.

"Bye dear! Loves!"

"Loves to you too." And with another bright smile, Kim's friend turned and disappeared into the crowd, her blue-streaked hair distinguishing her average-height form from the swamp of classmates.

With thoughts of optimism and encouragement, Kim also leapt to her feet and began strolling confidently to her Pre-Calc fifth period class with Mr. Waters and also Jared. Bracing herself for the upcoming events, she opened the door and saw…

Yep. Jared. Sitting in his desk, which had apparently moved from the back of the class to the desk at the front corner, _right next to hers. _As she walked towards the center of the room, she ignored the pounding in her heart as she met Jared's eyes, which shone along with a small smile that formed once she grinned tentatively at him. Hey, she still had to uphold social standards, even if it was awkward as hell. _Remember to be casual...yeah...casual and he'll stop staring...hopefully..._

And in his original seat near the back of the class sat his buddy, Paul, who smirked as Kim continued traveling through the room, otherwise empty except for the three of them and Mr. Waters sitting at his desk. As expected, Mr. Waters was rapidly typing on his computer, "completing important assignments," or so he claimed. Please. More like blowing up TNT and baby cows in Minecraft. Kim doubted that most of the teachers at La Push where even certified administrators.

It was intriguing that Jared and Paul seemed to be on best-friends-terms now, considering that they had never really been close before their leave of absence. And it was even more fascinating how Paul glanced sideways at Jared, who was, of course, still staring at Kim, then back to Kim, dipping his head in acknowledgement of her presence and announcing a quick, "Hey Kim," followed by a wink, which Kim couldn't determine to be unromantic or flirty. She guessed the first option.

And Jared _growled. _

Literally growling, like a feral dog or wolf, his eyes narrowed as he glared darkly at Paul, who surprisingly cringed. _What the fuck... _Serious feelings of uh-ohs set off fireworks in Kim's stomach, as Jared's eyes tightened into slits, his jaw tensing as his hands slowly curled into balls. His growling evolved into full-out snarling and Paul slinked backwards, quietly cursing under his breath. "Fuck man...no...you can't lose it...remember Sam…"

Mr. Waters, being oblivious as usual, didn't even glance up from his laptop. What a responsible teacher indeed.

A fight, perhaps was about to occur? Glancing between the two boys, one furious, the other with slight fear in his eyes and shrinking into his seat, Kim couldn't help but question why Allison hadn't prepared her for the event of her stalker getting into a brawl with his friend. Anything would have been helpful, because her mind was honestly blank. _Okay Kim...call 911, scream, or talk them out of their...whatever-is-going-on-situation._

Talk about a crazy day. Things seriously made _no sense _ at all. Kim couldn't remember Paul ever backing down, definitely not cringing from someone, nor could she recall Jared glowering at someone with such intense anger and dominance. In fact, she was ready to dial up the insanity ward to check herself in and see if something was wrong with her brain.

But outside of her bewilderment, she could sense that something was terribly amiss. Even though she had promised Allison that she would try to be careful around Jared-especially in a situation like this-she knew that she had to step in.

"Jared...you...you okay?" She mentally face palmed herself for her tongue-twistedness. Stuttering around the stalker? Really?

Despite her stumbling over words, it seemed to somehow do the trick. Just like that, Jared's rigid form loosened up and relaxed, as if her words were release all the tension in his muscles. Kim blew out a breath, after realizing that she had been holding it in all this time, as did Paul, who exhaled softly in relief and slumped down into his desk, muttering a soft "Shit...that was close…" Nodding subtly, Kim couldn't help but agree.

Was her voice really that soothing? Whatever. All Kim really cared about in the moment was that she didn't have to witness a fight.

As for Jared, turning in his seat to face Kim, who was walking over to her desk now that the crisis was avoided, he smiled slightly and murmured, "Yeah. I'm okay..." his words trailing off. And she also could have sworn she heard a barely-perceptible, "Well, now I am." His smile grew and his gaze dipped downwards, as if he was feeling...shy?His glowing golden-brown skin seemed to redden a bit and he shifted his hands upwards to run them through his cropped hair distractedly, a habit of his, Kim noted, whenever he was apprehensive.

God, he was _so_ freaking perfect. No one but Jared could be this sexy when nervous. Kim flushed from this thought, biting her lip and also glancing downwards as she felt her cheeks heating up to oven-worthy heat from the uncomfortableness, as she heard Jared cough noticeably. Paul, who wasn't helping the situation at all, snorted in what sounded like an attempt at stifling his laughter. So. Freaking. Awkward.

So much for being "confident."

Kim opened her mouth to say something, anything, to relieve the room of the tension that had settled in, but she was interrupted when a group of students suddenly burst through the door and filed into the classroom, followed by Mr. Waters finally looking up from his computer to sternly direct everyone to settle down and get ready for class. And much to her disappointment, Jared shook his head vigorously, like waking out of a stupor, and whipped back around instantly to look towards the front of the class. Promptly afterwards, Mr. Waters began his lecture, droning on about calculus, algebra, math work and blah. But to Kim, all the sounds in the classroom were a blur as she was once again deep in contemplation.

Dammit. For some stupid reason, Kim still felt this irrepressible urge to run her hands over Jared's beautiful face and see his even more beautiful smile...she sighed, for the sake of being completely pathetic. Yes, she had to admit it was nice to not have to deal with the socially stressful job of interacting with Jared-because seriously, her hands were already sweating from the intensity of that short conversation. And how she managed to talk him out of a fight? Things were already weird enough.

But still...his face was _so_ freaking gorgeous...his body, so perfect…it was so difficult to just not ogle at his sculpted cheekbones and soft-looking lips...

"Hey Kim?"

Startled out of her brooding (and maybe Jared-related fantasizing), Kim jerked her head upwards, only to meet the expectant gaze of Jared. "Um...I-I'm...sorry, what's up?" she stammered awkwardly, much to the amusement of Jared, whose lips curved into an entertained smirk. Again, mental face palm. "Group projects for Chapter 18. We're working with our neighbors. You and me, right?"

For a few seconds, Kim suddenly found herself mute. As she struggled to figure out how to exactly speak the English language, Jared's smirk grew, as if he found her uneasiness funny. _Excuse me? You're the one who was awkwardly staring at me yesterday morning… _Inwardly, she scowled at herself from seeming so shy and weak, and quickly replied, "Yeah." Ignoring the inscrutable glint in Jared's eyes, she pointedly cleared her throat and continued speaking. "Let's start."

And as they pushed their desks together, she heard Jared murmur in a deeper, but not so playful tone, "Yes, let's start."

**So Kim's new plan is to be casual and nonchalant. Wonder how long she'll be able to keep it up…**

**I like reviews. And follows. And Seth Clearwater. And favorites. And reading. And Seth's face. And his abs. And his arms...but yeah…**

**May 4th Update: Change in timeline, more on Allison.**

**Thanks for everything guys! :) Love love love.**


	9. Important: Update Info

**Update Info**

**Note: If you don't want to read all of this English gibberish, just read the Prologue, Dreams and Thoughts, and Post-Antebellum. Those chapters have new content.**

Today's update is a little different than usual.

I originally intended to add the next chapter-however, I ended up editing what I thought was a "small" section of my story...which led to me editing multiple chapters and adding one.

Regardless, the plot has not really changed. I added some more background info about Kim, moved some events in the story to the next day, as well as minor edits throughout the entire fanfic.

The chapters with new content are 1 (Prologue) and 8 (Post-Antebellum). The new chapter is 7 (Dreams and Thoughts), which I inserted in the middle of the chapters.

I hope that my edits enhance the overall fanfic. Furthermore, I have learned how dangerous revising can be to the creative process of writing. Note to self-Word vomit comes before editing. :)

Thanks for everything guys! More updates coming soon, as promised! 3


	10. Pardoned

**Disclaimer: Yep, the Twilight franchise belongs to Stephenie Meyer. However, this "fanchise" that I have created is mine. (Bad joke...sorry…eh not really.)**

***Clears throat. Well anyways...onwards to the update!**

**PS: Sorry if you dislike swear words. But this is a T-rated fanfic. There will not be any lemons-at the most, Jared ogling at Kim and some cursing throughout this story. I'll try to keep Jared's thoughts PG, but remember...he is a teenage boy. :) **

**Pardoned **_Jared_

In all his life, Jared had never found starting a conversation so difficult before.

Surrounding the pair were the other groups for the project, gathered around textbooks, chatting animatedly and gesturing wildly with hand motions. Whatever. He had greater problems to worry about than math.

Currently, Kim was already reading through the instructions sheet for the project, being the studious person she was. And Jared didn't really want to distract her, or make her think him even stranger, with a failed attempt at an apology. Admittedly, this was a lot harder than expected.

Plus, he was learning things while stalling the talk. For one, he discovered that Kim bit her lip softly when deep in concentration. He also discovered that when she did do that, it broke his own concentration. Clenching his right hand into a fist and ignoring the prickling sensation in his stomach, he slowly sucked in a breath-neither fits of anger, but rather to resist the urge to touch Kim's heavenly face, feel, _taste _the glorious silkiness of her skin. _Focus Jared...she already thinks you're a weirdo, remember? _

And that was partially true. While walking through the hallways today, more people turned to gawk at him than yesterday, as if they had not yet gotten used to the new-and-improved Jared Cameron. More gossip, more rumors, about drugs, the elders, Uley...he had wanted to smack Maisy when he overheard her whispering into Hannah's ear about Sam and a secret coupe. It was starting to take its toll, as Jared found himself growing more and more agitated in class, when his classmates either stared at him unabashedly, gave him the silent treatment, or starting chatting it up about possible reasons for his change in behavior and appearance in a way they thought was covert and silent. A bunch of assholes. Jared was already getting worked-up from thinking about all the back-talking and treatment he and Paul were receiving from their shitty peers.

Kim coughed, shifting her shoulder slightly and pulling back up the sweater sleeve that was slipping down her shoulder. Distracted from his brooding, he proceeded to gawk at her. Weirdo indeed.

But her beauty at the moment! Jared pressed his lips together, in an aim to restrain himself from leaning forward and tenderly kissing the dimple in Kim's shoulder, which was prominent even under her maroon sweater. And then, kissing her collarbone, exposed with the V-neck cut of her top, brushing his lips all the way along her collarbone to her strong jawline, feeling her shiver in delight.

Once again, he remembered how concerned she had sounded when she asked him if he was okay. How she had trouble talking when he startled her. Shy, quiet, mature, and smart...but bold if necessary and caring. Indignant when he caught her acting tongue-tied around him. These thoughts only made him hungrier for her voice, her touch, her face. Truly, her beauty surpassed all of his previous girlfriends by a landslide...none of which whose names he could currently remember, mind you.

Screw math. Kim was here. Kim was in front of him. Kim was everything.

"Jared?"

He shook himself out of his lovey-dovey drowse, turning his head to meet the gaze of Kim. "Yeah?"

"Can you hand me that textbook?"

Jared passed her the book on the corner of his desk, feeling a jolt surge through his veins as her hands gently brushed his fingers to take the book. Soft. Warm. Angelic. "Thanks." Even with short speeches, her voice was still soothing and melodious.

"No problem," he replied absentmindedly, distracted by Kim placing the textbook in the middle of their desks and scooting closer to him to read. Already from this proximity, he was finding it difficult to breathe, her sweet scent filling his senses. And judging from how her face was flushing and her heart beat was now thumping loudly, she was also flustered. He sucked in a deeper breath, tasting the vanilla in her aroma, and internally sighing in bliss. Was that a hint of cinnamon and spice?

Oh lord. Innocent and enticing. Jared was about to explode from her perfection.

As Kim pulled a notebook out of her backpack, Jared glanced down at the cover. A silhouette of a wolf, standing on a cliff and howling at the moon. It looked like a computer print-out, showcasing her artistic talent. "You like wolves, huh?"

"Yeah. Always have." She blushed slightly, and managed a small grin. Jared recalled a dim memory, in which he defended her from their peers for skipping lunch during elementary school to check out books at the library. Probably to check out information and pictures about wolves, which explained her amazing skill at drawing them now.

This made Jared's grin. "I like them too. They're cool, especially with the legends." Kim's smile grew, her eyes brightening instantly, before resuming her perusing of the textbook. Little did she know that the legends and wolves were more important than she thought. And now that he knew of her fascination for wolves, it might be even easier to tell her the truth.

But that would be later on.

_Now or never._ Enough stalling. It was time to think about the now, not the future between them that might not even happen, and begin. _Remember everything Paul told you. Apologize for being a creepy bastard, talk about how everyone treats you like an alien, blah, blah, blah, then she accepts. And we'll be cool. Hopefully. _Jared exhaled, feeling the blood rush through his body in anticipation. _I'm ready._

"I'm so, so s-s-sorry!" Jared stammered.

Jared mentally smacked his head, as Kim's head jerked towards him, cocking her head in bewilderment. Seriously? What happened to cool and confident? Stuttering? Blurting out things? One chance to make up for everything, and he blew it with awkward-ass, wimpy apologizing? Literally, the world's saddest, lamest, most pathetic "sorry" in the world. The icy urge to throw his head against the desk, possibly breaking it in the process, pulsed through his spine.

Oh well. That was probably what he was going to do if Kim thought he was an idiot after this. Admittedly, she did have every right to.

Her mouth was open, as expected, with her eyebrows drawn together in confusion. "For...what?"

Here was his chance. "For being really weird around you, because I've never really talked to you before, but you're really nice and sweet, and everyone's been gossiping about me and it sucks like hell...and...I really appreciate you not treating me like I'm a drug-dealer or criminal and I just was really grateful and acting really weird and I don't know." Everything rushed out at once, his agony, need to express himself, his exhaustion, and he continued.

"I had some family issues to take care of over the past few weeks and it's been total shit since. All the rumors, everything…" Jared's voice trailed off, words all dried up, just as Kim's surprised look softened at the family part. It wasn't a lie. He did feel like shit because of his classmates. His leave from school was due to family problems. However, it wasn't the complete truth.

That didn't seem to matter to Kim. She smiled sympathetically, her voice soft as she replied, "I know how that feels...I remember how it was when my grandpa died in fifth grade…" One of the elders, an important member of the council, very close to Kim and her parents. Jared recalled a different Kim, totally silent for weeks, not talking to any of her friends or teachers. Of course she would understand his situation. "It sucks...and...well, I'm sorry. And I understand. Also," she added, face flushing a bit now, "if you need to talk to anyone...I'm here." She averted her eyes from Jared for a moment.

So she did know how it felt. And in the process, accepted his apology.

Sweet relief. She didn't think he was crazy. She didn't think he was creepy. Rather, she understood what he was going through. And she was willing to talk more. She _wanted _to talk to him. _Glory! _Jared wanted to jump on top of the desks and start dancing a jig. _Everything's okay! _Wait till he told Paul. He would definitely give him all of Emily's food.

"I think I'll take you up on your offer," he stated to Kim, her smile softly glowing. "Thanks."

Kim and him could be acquaintances, best friends, and maybe later...more than that. His heart swelled as he imagined them talking, laughing, going out, doing everything pals did. More time spent with Kim sounded good to him.

"No problem, Jared." _Success!_

**Whew. I'm tired now. Thanks for 20 follows! You guys are the best.**

**Review and perhaps, more follows? They motivate me. :D**


	11. A Jolt in the Companionship

**Disclaimer: As usual, the Twilight series and affiliated characters do not belong to me. The characters I created, however, including the teachers, Allison, and people not mentioned in the saga, do.**

**Woot woot! 25 follows! Thank you all so freaking much. 3**

**Time lapse in this story.**

**A Jolt in the Companionship **_Kim_

It had been an amazing class. Or should she say, an amazing month.

His eyes, so full of pain, a type of mature, weary hollowness, as his words stumbled out one after another. How everyone was treating him like an insane person. How he was struggling with family issues. How he had trouble talking to others, how easily worked-up he was now. How nervous and agonized he looked and sounded.

Kim could relate all too well. Her grandfather had truly been, although how cliche it sounded, the light of her life. On summer nights as a child, she had loved to sit out on the porch outside her house with her grandfather, listening to the Quileute legends that had been passed down in her family for generations. He had a talent for telling a story and creating images in your brain, evoking scenes of the wolf warriors and her ancestors. And always, his gaze, usually distant and kind, glowed as he spoke more, taking her hand in his wrinkled one, wrapping his arms around her small frame.

She recalled the eager shiver of excitement that coursed through her when her grandfather reached her favorite part of the legends-the part about shapeshifting wolves. It was him who had first introduced the mysterious canines to her. Those were her favorite memories.

He was her confidant, her best friend, and everything had been perfect...that is, until he died when she was in third grade. A heart attack, of all things. He had been healthy, fine until the event. Then bam.

It was the hardest thing in the world.

At age eight, Kim fell into a sort of depression, refusing to talk to her teachers and classmates, scarcely communicating with her parents, barely eating or sleeping. Her peers, confused at first, soon adjusted to it. It had been like she wanted to talk to her classmates, but simply lost the ability to. Maybe it was the same for Jared.

Frightened, her parents had rushed her to the doctors and the therapists. They had all said the same thing, that she was grieving, and it would take time to get over her grandfather.

But they had not prescribed anything to heal her broken heart. And for weeks, she had been stuck in a chasm of darkness, despair, and longing to see her grandfather's face one more time. All she could think about was him. The days crawled by, as she stared at the ceiling, imagining that her grandfather's eyes were there.

The doctors were right. Every day, she thought about her grandpa a little less. In two months, she started sleeping soundly every night, with no nightmares. In three, she had started interacting with her peers again. And by the end of the year, any one could say she was a happy child.

But the death of Kim's grandpa had left a void in her, one that could never be filled again. And the one thing she had wished was to have someone, beside her parents, to talk to throughout the whole time. Sure, her mom and dad were nice enough, but she had wished there was someone at school she could vent to. And at that time, she hadn't really been good friends with anyone, Allison included.

So she decided to give Jared company, just for as long as he needed it. It made sense for him to act so strange since returning to school, but Kim was determined not to let what happened to her happen to him.

They had started chatting more at school, at first mostly in class, then spending time together at brunch and lunch. Then after school, walking home together, sitting at the beach, and just talking about...everything. It had seemed to improve his dark spirits, simply chatting about day to day issues, especially since he had only been interacting with Paul, her, and sometimes Allison lately. So far it had been a month they had been friendly with one another, and Jared hadn't yet told her exactly what was up with his family. Kim honestly didn't mind-she was too euphoric about spending time with her crush and pleased to be helping someone.

"Wooh!"

Kim glanced up to see Jared sprinting through the chilly waters of the beach, laughing as he did so. He grinned at her cheekily, and raised a hand in greeting. She giggled, and waved back.

For the past few days, the pair had been spending time together after school at the beach, teasing, talking, and just hanging out. These excursions helped to take Kim's mind off of school work, and they also seemed to cheer Jared up.

And as she hung out more with him, she surprisingly learned more things about her affection for Jared. He had an amazing sense of humor, making her double over in side-splitting laughter everyday. He was not a picky eater, and had a huge appetite, larger than the average teenage boy. These were things that only strengthened her love for the boy, and made her realize how justified she was in adoring him.

So yeah, they had established a good-natured, platonic relationship. Even so, seeing Jared wave at her in the hallways sent flutters through her stomach, and a rush of blood to her face. She couldn't help that he was just so gorgeous.

Speaking of looks, Kim wondered if Jared's appearance had anything to do with those family issues. Not that she was going to pry-he could tell her when she was ready. Yes, it was unusual, but Kim wasn't willing to ruin their friendship by being too nosy. She was enjoying it way too much.

"Hey Kim!"

Kim shook herself out of her musings, jumping to her feet from the log she was sitting on. Jared ran up to her, feet sandy, the bottoms of his cut-off shorts and sleeves of his tank top hoodie wet. "You gonna sit there all day or come?"

In response, she snorted and walked up to him, noting how dwarfed she was, barely reaching his chest, as she moved closer to him. Leaning in, she whispered, "Race you there."

She knew she was going to lose, as Jared was taller, stronger, and more athletic than him. But that didn't take the fun out of seeing his face of disbelief, then amusement, as she dashed towards the shoreline. Maybe with this head start she could win.

Not so much.

A pair of sturdy arms grabbed her from behind, halting her mad sprint. Pulling her into a warm chest, she was spun around to meet the smirking face of Jared Cameron. "That's not fair," he murmured, an evil glint in his eyes.

And then it started. Suddenly, Jared's arms whipped out and he began tickling her stomach, knowing full well how ticklish Kim was and what she was going to do to him when she could breathe. Simultaneously laughing and yelling insults at Jared, Kim attempted to curl into a ball on the sand in an effort to end the "attack." This action also pulled Jared down, so that he was almost laying on top of her outstretched body.

Like he had been electrocuted, he sucked in a breath, his face now flushed red and his eyes meeting hers. Kim froze, her cheeks hot, and she stared into his eyes. For a few seconds, they said nothing, simply taking note of the awkward position, neither reacting. Whether it was because they didn't know what to do or they liked being in such a situation each other, Kim couldn't tell. All she could think was how warm his body was, and how close their faces were, and if they moved a few inches closer...

"Hey kids!"

Jared started, jerking his body upwards at the sound of another boy's voice. Reaching down, he lifted Kim up by her waist-succeeding in sending more shockwaves through her body-and pulled her to her feet. "Sorry," he mumbled in a gruff voice, red-faced and avoiding her eyes. He didn't really need to apologize, as she was doing the same.

Paul was running towards them, the usual cocky grin on his face. "Dude, your mom just called me. You have to go home now. Probably in trouble or something." He winked at Kim, while Jared promptly growled softly in his throat. She didn't blame him. To be honest, she didn't really trust Paul's flirtatious attitude either, but she knew that he wasn't interested in her.

She also couldn't help but note how Paul and Jared's figures were so similar now. Tall, bulky, and strong. _Again, not my business. _Mentally, she chided herself for being so nosy, as rude as her gossiping classmates.

Groaning, Jared flipped Paul off, and turned back to Kim. "Um...I guess I'll see you...tomorrow?" Still awkward, still not looking her in the eyes.

"Actually," Kim corrected him, as a pang of sadness struck her, "Tomorrow's the weekend. I'll see you on Monday."

His eyes dimmed a bit at that, the corners of his mouth turning downwards. "Oh. Oh, okay. See you then." He managed a smile, though it wasn't as magnificent as before, and turned to follow Paul off the beach.

Watching their disappearing figures, Kim proceeded to walk down the beach in the direction of her home. As usual, the emptiness that came when Jared departed her came. It was a bit sappy to admit that, but it was becoming frequent, that she would feel like a part of her was missing when she wasn't with him

She also couldn't help but recall the heat that rushed through her when she and Jared fell onto the sand together, how he had seemed so embarrassed by that. It had sent a jolt through her, not one of alarm, but of surprised pleasure.

But Jared seemed more ashamed than pleased.

Of course, any boy would be uncomfortable about landing on top of a girl. But she secretly hoped that he was blushing because he felt the same way as her-that he liked her too. She shook her head to clear her thoughts.

He was just a friend, someone who needed companionship in hard times. Jared would never like her, not in that way at least. She wasn't gorgeous, intelligent, or...whatever guys looked in girls for enough. And while that usually didn't bother her, Kim wished she could look like Maisy or one of those girls, be as confident as them, just so Jared would be interested in her. Maybe then she would be good enough for him.

Wishful thinking. Maybe calling Allison would help her conflicted feelings. But in the meantime, she would have to wait for Monday to see Jared again.

**So it's been a month since Jared and Kim have been talking. I used sort of a time lapse to show it. Hope it was successful!**

**Thanks for reading, reviewing, following, and favoriting (is that even a word?)! **

**P.S. Seth rocks.**


	12. Learning

**Disclaimer: The Twilight series does not belong to me**

**To the guests who commented: I try to update at least every 3-4 days. You guys are so sweet! **

**To Madhu: Seth FTW! His personality is amazing. Thanks for your comment!**

**Learning** _Jared_

Jared had learned a lot over the past few weeks.

"Mr. Waters is a dick."

That comment, however, not being one of the important lessons, but an insight nevertheless. Jared glanced at Kim, who was cursing Mr. Waters for being a terrible excuse for a teacher. One thing he had gained from chatting with Kim was her dislike of their math teacher and suspicion that he had an active secret life as an intense Minecraft player. "I never thought I'd hear you say that about a teacher. I'm still getting used to hearing you swear," he replied cheekily, hoping to arouse a witty, cute response.

"Shut up Jared." He snorted, watching Kim attempt to suppress a grin and maintain an annoyed expression. This girl was absolutely adorable.

At the moment, the two of them were lugging their backpacks for a short walk, now that school was out for the day. It had been an uneventful weekend, a bit boring due to not seeing Kim, a bit irritating with Paul visiting his house both days. Jared had been so relieved this morning that he could meet up with her again.

They were now bonded more than ever before. She seemed to have pitied him, for "having family issues," or as he knew, issues due to family. It was this understanding that brought them closer together, enabled them to hang out together during and after school. He had gotten to know her, and enjoyed every single second of time spent with Kim.

Everyday he learned new things about her. Like her fascination with wolves-which he already kind of knew, after looking at her notebook cover, pickiness when it came to eating, and nervous habits. When she was agitated and bit her soft, pink bottom lip to calm her nerves...it was absolutely enchanting.

And it only strengthened Jared's affection for her and urge to wrap his arms around her small frame, pulling her against his chest.

Jared was determined to become her best friend, confidant, eventual boyfriend, husband-her everything. And if doing so meant having to learn all of her likes and dislikes, habits, personality traits...he would.

After musing about this for a few minutes in silence, they arrived at a clearing near the opening of the La Push woods, a small, weathered gray house, under the shelter of an overhanging tree. As they approached, Kim reached out to brush her fingers against the orange and gold marigolds. "Is this your house?" she questioned, leaning down to sniff the flowers. "It's so lovely."

Carefully, Jared composed a good answer in his mind. "It's Sam Uley's. He lives here with his fiancee Emily. He's been helping me take care of some things...I come here after school to do stuff," Jared slowly replied, making sure to keep his response vague but satisfactory enough to answer Kim's inquiry. It was definitely a bad idea to reveal too much at once, let alone everything.

Her eyes widened considerably at this information. "Oh…" her voice trailing off, before continuing again in a softer, hushed tone. "Didn't...didn't Sam ditch Leah, Emily's cousin, for Emily? And Emily got attacked by a bear or something."

"Yeah. It wasn't going to work out with Leah anyway. And its not Emily's fault." Despite his uncomfortableness at Leah's broken heart, Jared felt a duty to defend Sam's reputation. It wasn't his fault either, that this imprinting business had screwed up his relationship with people. Life just wasn't fair to people like Sam, Paul, and him.

Stepping onto the small porch, Jared rapped on the faded blue door three times. He had to admit, it was a bit relieving to learn that Kim already knew of Emily's condition. Dealing with Kim's shock and awkward reaction, and then Sam's annoyance, would be exhausting.

"Glad you're here, Jared," a melodious, woman's voice sang out, followed by the sound of someone fumbling with a lock. The door swung open, revealing a young woman with glossy black hair and coppery skin, along with three scars running down her face and a tightened corner of the mouth, puckered slightly. Emily Young, who was currently smiling at Jared and then at Kim, who blushed. _Kim blushes when she meets new people...going to remember that…_

"So you've brought a friend...Kim, is it?" Eyes bulging out of her sockets at hearing Emily say her name, Kim nodded slowly. "Come on in, you two!" Emily's form disappeared through another doorway, leaving Kim and Jared to follow after her.

Considering that they had never met before, Kim seemed pretty startled that Emily already knew of her name. So maybe Jared_ had_ brought up Kim's name more than once when he was with Emily and Sam. Or as Paul liked to say it, _"He won't stop talking about her every single fucking minute." _Then again, Sam was no better when it came to Emily.

Speaking of Sam, as the pair walked into the spacious kitchen, Sam leaped up from his position on the chair at the table. Crossing the room to Emily, his alpha wrapped his arms around her and tenderly kissed her scarred face, much to her amusement. "I wasn't even gone that long, honey," she murmured, giggling at the show of affection.

"To me, it was eternity," Sam replied in his deep, rumbling voice, pressing two more kisses to her temple. With his large, muscular stature, Sam made Emily look like a dwarf. His face, usually stern and mature, along with the average Quileute features-black hair, tanned skin-, glowed and a smile grew as he looked down at his fiancee. The power of imprinting did wonders.

Next to Jared and standing in the doorway, Kim leaned against the wall and coughed awkwardly. As for Jared, he felt a pang of jealousy, rather than uncomfortableness at all the touching, that he and Kim could not yet be like the couple in front of them. _Patience…_

Screw patience. He was itching to trace his hands along Kim's soft waists and kiss her all the way from her neck to her forehead.

That, however, would have to wait. Now aware of Kim's uneasy shifting from feet to feet, Sam glanced up from his nuzzling of Emily to nod at Jared. "Good to see you, Jared. And this is Kim, am I correct?" he inquired, looking at Kim expectantly.

Blushing even deeper, Kim squeaked out a soft, "Yep. It's nice to meet you both." Averting her eyes, she proceeded to stare shyly at the ground.

"We just have some homework to do. We'll be in the guest room," Jared quickly interjected, taking note of Kim's uncomfortableness with meeting new people. Dipping his head to Sam and Emily, he turned to leave the kitchen and travel down the hallway.

"He obviously loves her to death," Kim murmured as they stepped into the small guest bedroom. More like love her enough to sacrifice his own death, Jared knew all too well.

Reaching into her backpack, Kim rustled around and pulled out the instructions sheet for the math project. It was already a month, yet the entire class was still working on the presentation. Though Jared did not mind at all working with Kim and spending more time with her in order to do so, it just proved the Kim's theory that Mr. Waters was indeed a Minecraft enthusiast.

After about an hour of rehearsing their speech, which included failed trigonometry puns-this algebra really _trig-_gers my brain cells!-Kim left the room to grab a glass of water. Even though it was a tad bit nosy, Jared couldn't help but listen to her and Emily's conversation.

Then again, it wasn't like he couldn't un-hear them talking. Ever since the change, his hearing had been incredible. And in moments like these where he really wanted to overhear others, it came in handy.

"So Kim…I was wondering…"

"Um...yeah?" Jared wondered if Kim always sounded this tentative and timid around new people. Whatever the truth, it was freaking endearing.

"Are you and Jared an item? You guys are really cute together." Jared swore loudly, followed by clapping his hand over his mouth. While he did adore Emily, her boldness did get in the way at times, especially moments like now.

"What?! No, no way, no, no, no…" Even though Emily's directness would be daunting to anyone, Jared felt his heart sink a bit at Kim's emphatic denial. Was it really that terrible to be in a relationship with him? "We're just friends. We haven't really been close until now, and even so, we're not even that close." That last part stung. All this time, he had considered them to be extremely good friends.

Obviously taken aback, Emily inhaled softly and replied quietly. "Oh. I wasn't aware...I'm sorry. That was a bit...direct of me, wasn't it? It's just that you two seem to have a nice thing going on. I apologize."

"It's okay. To be honest, I'm trying to figure everything out right now too." Maybe she did want to be with him that way...but was unsure about her feelings? Confused, perhaps? Or maybe she didn't feel about him the way he did.

"I know all too well how you feel. If you need someone to talk to...I'm here," Emily offered, her voice gentle and sympathetic. Leave it to her to be the therapist. Always, she played that role, for Sam, him...hell, even the stubborn, worthless Paul.

But he didn't want two girls' heart-to-heart chatting. Jared wanted to know whether Kim loved him or not.

Ugh. Plopping down on the couch, Jared dragged his hand down the side of his face and sighed, tuning out from Kim and Emily's continued conversation.

No matter how much he thought about the situation and tried to guess Kim's thoughts, he made no progress. The paper in his hand was probably all crumpled from his stress at the current moment, but that did little to release his frustration. He knew that they hadn't been close for long, that making a move too soon would be too fast. At the same time, however, this imprinting business gave his an urge to kiss Kim senseless every time they met. It was beginning to drive him crazy that he couldn't.

Did she want him or not?

He had learned a lot of things from hanging out with Kim. One of which being that women were _damn hard_ to understand.

**Whew! Glad I got that all out…my hands are sweaty right now from the hot laptop keys.:)**

**Thank you for all your follows! All your comments and notifications about one new favorite or follow in my emails make me smile and spur me to write!**

**Yeah, Seth is awesome. AND DON'T YOU FORGET IT! :D**


	13. Emergency

**Disclaimer: The Twilight series and Disney do not belong to me.**

* * *

**Emergency **_Kim_

_Saturday: Dinner at 6 with Allison and Jared_

Kim stared at the note posted on her mirror, while simultaneously checking her reflection in the mirror. Black tights? Check. Ironed red skirt? Check. Gray top? Check. Hair that didn't quite look like a depressed mop?

Well...close enough to a check.

To celebrate their successful math presentation on Friday, Jared was taking her out to dinner in an act of chivalry and happiness for the A. While Jared had only invited her, Kim had insisted bringing Allison along, as she had been kind of neglecting her best friend this month with all the Jared drama. To be honest, she knew Allison understood their lack of outings;but at the same time, it was only fair that they still try to get together. Friends had to make it work.

So here Kim was at 5:55, doing a last minute check to make sure she looked acceptable for a night out with friends. As the more quiet, reserved person she was, Kim didn't usually go out to eat with classmates-her idea of "fun" was watching Disney movies with Allison at home. As a result, she wasn't surprised to find herself having no idea what to wear, what to say, and whether she should pay the bill or not.

Of course, these problems were resolved by her years of devotedly watching Disney sitcoms. Wear semi-formal attire to dinners, be polite, and let the man pay the bill. Or, if she was a dedicated feminist, she could insist on paying and physically threaten Jared with a kitchen knife if he refused to let her do so.

Not the best idea.

"Hey Kimmie, how do I look?"

Kim spun around to see her friend standing in the doorway of her bedroom, in a pleated green dress, completely girly with ribbons and lace patterns on the sleeves. "Almost didn't recognize you there, Ally," Kim managed to say after getting over her shock. "I've never seen you wear a dress."

Snorting at this, Allison twirled around in a circle, making a face as she stroked the edge of the dress. "And you never will again. I'm wearing jeans to graduation. Besides," she added, with a twinkle in her eye, "I have to dress nice for my Kim's first date with her future husband."

"Shut up, Ally." Allison's reply was a very graceful snort-laugh, and before she could continue her caveman speech, the doorbell rang. Snickering again, Allison snuck a mischievous grin at Kim and sprinted for the door. Moments later, she heard a "Hey Jared, Kim's still getting ready. Thanks for coming," followed by a lower, huskier tone, "No problem, Allison. Kim can take as much time as she wants." Kim rolled her eyes, suppressing a smile all the while. Always the gentleman.

Sneaking one more glance at herself in the mirror, Kim took a deep breath and walked down the hallways and out the door, locking the door behind herself. As she approached the jeep, Jared stepped out, smiling as he opened the car door for Kim. _The gentleman. _"Glad you could make it, Kim," he murmured, blushing as he looked down. Flushed as well, Kim muttered a quiet "thanks" and stepped in.

From the back seat, Allison grinned at her. "Jared certainly seemed to find you…enrapturing, am I right?"

Ahahahaha.

* * *

The moon was full that night, bathing the tree tops with its silver sheen, casting shadows across the forest ground. Outside of Kim's house in the front yard, she and Jared were lounging out on the grass, chatting quietly. At the moment, Kim was chortling over the events at dinner. "And when Ally snorted up that meatball? Oh my gosh, I thought I was gonna die!" Jared said nothing, merely smiling, and she could have sworn his eyes glowed as he looked at her laughing.

Even though Kim was not quite into outings like these, she had to admit that tonight's dinner had been a great experience. Jared had been kind as ever, Ally, funny and goofy, and herself-not totally socially awkward. An overall successful night.

After driving Ally home and then Kim, Jared had bumped into Kim's parents, who had come back from work while they were out at dinner. Charmed by Jared's perfect manners and sweet smile, her parents gladly had informed him that he was "welcome to come here more and stay as long as wanted tonight." Kim's mom probably wanted him to stay forever, as before they descended down the porch steps to sit in the front yard, she beamed and whispered in Kim's ear, "I like this one, Kimmie."

Kim could not agree more.

It had been a satisfying night, and here they were now, gazing at the stars and moon on the clear night, out of small talk to make but still lapsing into a comfortable silence, the kind between friends who didn't need words to fill the space. Next to her, Jared sighed in contentment, tilting his head towards the sky and shutting his eyes. While hyper aware of his arm a mere inches from hers, she also closed her eyes and reflected on the past weeks

While she wasn't the most sentimental person, Kim thought about how..._fulfilled_ she had been feeling ever since she and Jared became friends. It was like he understood her, even more than Allison, and also enjoyed their relationship as much as she did.

In fact, Kim had forgotten the reason why they had even started talking-to help with his "family issues," which probably meant loss of a loved one, she assumed. But whatever the reason they were hanging out more now, Jared seemed to be so much happier. Always greeting her and Allison, heck, even Paul, with smiles, cracking jokes, finding joy in making others happy.

Of course, Allison insisted that Jared acted the most cheerful and hilarious when he was around Kim. It was like he "became his best self," as she stated, whenever they were together. While Kim liked to think that too, she pushed that thought back. Highly unlikely-no, actually, impossible. She and Jared were just friends, finding glee in each other's company. Friends and no more.

Suddenly, Jared jerked out of his relaxed position on the ground and jolted to his feet, body tense. Breath hitching, he whipped his head around, hands clenching and unclenching as he did so. Concerned, Kim pushed herself up to her feet and stared at Jared, who was now breathing hard. "What's wrong? Are you okay?"

When he didn't respond, Kim took a step towards him, pondering what could have happened to freak him out this much. "Did you hear a branch or something?" _Easily spooked? There's nothing here. _Again, no reply, simply harder breathing and now, a bead of sweat dropping down the side of Jared's face. It was like he had forgotten she was even there.

Kim placed her hand against Jared's chest in an effort to get his attention, ignoring the tingling in her fingers as she did so and mentally chiding herself for getting distracted in a situation like this. In softer voice, she repeated herself, "You okay?"

This seemed to do the trick. His eyes, before wide and fearful, relaxed as he stared into her eyes. Then, he abruptly stepped away from her, and gazed across the yard, body not as tense now.

But just like before, his body tightened again once more. Sprinting back to Kim-and much to her surprise-he scooped her up in his arms and dashed for the door. He clutched her tightly against his warm, solid chest, so close she could hear the thumping of his heart and feel her small frame pressed against the hard lines of his muscular abdomen.

Before she could react or even thick of reacting, she was inside. "Jared...what...what...is going on?"

Jared, standing in the doorway, pale-faced and eyes wide with panic, urgently spoke, "Stay inside for the rest of the night. It's not safe." Speaking in riddles, as Kim tilted her head to the side and stared vacantly at him in bewilderment.

"What do you me-" He shushed her, glancing from side to side, as if someone were to sneak up from behind him in that instant. "Promise me," he told Kim desperately, his eyes boring into hers. "_Promise_ me."

Still frozen with confusion and shock, Kim nodded wordlessly in assent. Jared exhaled, in relief. "Tell your parents to stay inside too. Stay safe." And again, before she could form a coherent response to express her bafflement, he ducked down and quickly pressed his lips quickly to her forehead. It only lasted a few seconds, yet time slowed as his soft, warm lips gently touched her skin.

Pulling away and gazing into Kim's eyes solemnly, Jared turned and ran into the darkness. She could have sworn that he pulled his shirt off somewhere in the distance...but that was either her mind playing tricks or her teenage fantasization.

Kim slowly closed the door and locked it, and for a few moments, she stood there, trying to put the puzzle together and figure whatever had just happened. It wasn't as if a robber or serial killer was standing nearby, aiming his gun for her.

Just then, Kim's mom came hurtling through the hallway, stopping just before she rammed Kim into the door. "Kim, honey," she managed, chest heaving and eyes wide, and Kim grabbed her mother's shoulders to steady her, "Thank goodness you're alright. I just got a call from one of the police officers. He said there was an armed burglary nearby our house just minutes ago. We need to stay inside for the rest of the night." Just like Jared told her.

"Jared told me to get inside and stay there...how did he know Mom?" All at once, Kim faced a horrifying realization. "Mom! Jared ran out of our yard! He's out there! The burglar's out there!" Now her mother's arms were around hers, holding her tightly as she writhed in her grip, straining to reach the door and find Jared. Panic seared through her lungs, and painful, terrifying fear, that he would be gone already, dead by the bullet. "He could be killed! Mom!"

To her immense astonishment, her mother was keeping calm. Calm? How could anyone be calm when her friend was out there, an open target to some crazy guy with a gun? Was everyone crazy? "Honey, I spoke with Emily yesterday. Jared and Paul work with Sam and the police to keep the town safe. It was actually Paul who called me." Again, more riddles. Safe from what? Even through her panic, Kim pondered what would exactly constitute a threat to the quiet town of La Push.

Her mother continued, her voice soothing, as if Kim were a scared animal. That wasn't entirely an exaggeration, as Kim was now fighting the urge to throw herself out the door and after Jared. "Sam knows what he's doing. So does Jared. He's probably letting everyone know now to stay inside. It'll be fine."

"But how would he know? No one called him or anything! And he could still get shot!"

She shrugged. "That I'm not sure. The robber probably won't shoot anyone, Kim, and definitely not a kid. He took off running when the police came," she reassured Kim, "But the important thing is that you're safe. And Jared will be too, don't you worry." One more time, she squeezed Kim tight in a bear hug, then released her. "I'm sure you can call Jared later. It's no use worrying no. Go take a rest."

Her mother scurried away into the kitchen, leaving Kim to again, stand in front of the door, but this time with fright for Jared's life. Taking a deep breath, she turned around and trudged to her bedroom, flinging herself onto her bed.

Kim had to admit that her mother was right-burglars, especially ones armed, wouldn't shoot juveniles if they were already fleeing the police. But it didn't quell the terror accumulating in her gut, that Jared would be hurt, or worse, dead.

Glancing down at her phone, Kim dialed Jared's number. No answer, except for his voice mail recording. _Hey, it's Jared. Sorry I couldn't get you at this time. Leave a message and I'll reply asap. Thanks! _Biting her lip, she waited a few seconds before speaking. "Hi Jared. It's Kim…" her voice trailed off. What were people supposed to say when they feared for someone's life? "Um...I just want to know if you're okay. I heard about the burglary and we're all staying inside...I also know you and Paul help the police but...call me when you can. Okay, thanks."

Exhausted, Kim flopped onto her pillows. Clutching her phone in her hand, she slowly drifted off to sleep, the last thought in her head to call Jared first thing in the morning.

* * *

**Thanks for getting me 32 follows guys! I love you all…**

**I love reviews too. Constructive criticism, compliments, all of the stuff. (Well, maybe not flames, but I'll just ignore those. If you're going to dislike something, give a reason. Don't just insert a bunch of swear words and hate.) :D**

**Seth. His eyes. His face. His abs. His deltoids. 'Nuff said.**


	14. Time to Go

**Disclaimer: The Twilight Saga does not belong to me.**

* * *

**Time to Go**

It killed Jared.

Not the vampire stench. While their sickly sweet scent did make Jared want to gag, it wasn't that that made his head hurt.

It was a week without seeing Kim. Exactly six days, ten hours, and twenty-seven minutes had passed since he had last been with her, and every second was even more agonizing than the previous.

It was currently six in the morning, and just like the days before, they had ran to Sam's house as early as possible, shifted, and started patrolling La Push. At the moment, Jared was passing through the thick, wooded area of town, where civilians were unlikely to enter, keeping a careful eye out for the enemy

Or so he was supposed to. In reality, he was sulking about not seeing Kim for days.

That Friday, when the vampire had come so close to Kim's house, Jared had never experienced quite a terror like that before. The thought of one of those leeches putting their hands on her body...Jared shuddered. He would rip their limbs off, one by one, if they even touched Kim. _His_ Kim.

_Hey, would you focus? We kinda have a job here...and if you keep on fantasizing about that girl, we're probably gonna let one of those bloodsuckers get by us. _Paul's voice shook Jared out of his thoughts, reminding him grudgingly why exactly they were up so early in the morning. The telepathic thought communication as wolves came in handy, especially with the three of them taking the job of patrolling.

Of course, it did also have its drawbacks, like in situations like this where all Jared wanted to do was mope around and pine for Kim.

_Jared, Paul's right. That leech is probably out of here now…but we still need to watch out. You can see Kim in a few days when the coast is clear._ Screw Sam's authority.

In response, Sam growled lowly. _Watch it pup._ Jared sighed-or he huffed, since wolves lack the ability to sigh-and agreed in assent. This imprinting made his stomach turn inside out, pained his chest with the need to be in Kim's company.

Sympathy flowed out from Sam at Jared's unhappiness and discomfort. Immediately, an image of Emily smiling at Sam, putting her hand to his face, and kissing him gently flashed through Jared's mind. _I know it's hard. _Even with mind communication, Jared could still imagine Sam's gruff, low voice. _But you have to focus. What if a vampire gets by us and to them?_

Instantaneously, growls rippled through Jared and Sam's body. The thought of one of those filthy leeches sent a sharp, staccato rush of fury and adrenaline through both of their veins. Jared's skin crawled at the thought of one of their stony, tight-lipped faces, hungrily watching Kim or Emily sleep.

He had to do this. For the town, for Kim. Grumbling, but only slightly now, Jared continued trotting through the forest.

* * *

Jared stared at the phone in his hand, replaying Kim's message for about the thousandth time.

"I just want to know if you're ok…" A small surge of satisfaction rushed through him at her words-not simply at her lovely, musical voice, but at her worry. It soothed him, to know that she was concerned for his welfare and cared about him.

After finishing dinner with his mother and trudging up to his bedroom, he had thrown himself onto his bed in defeat and exhaustion. Sensing the delicacy of her son's current mood, his mother had followed and asked if he was alright.

His answer? "Girl problems." That was a justified enough reason for his mom, who had promptly informed Jared that she would be here if he needed her, and left him to his brooding, as if she had been able to read his mind and tell that he needed to be alone.

Jared felt torn, between yet again ignoring her request to call her back and feeling pained in the heart after doing so, or picking up the phone and dialing her number. He knew that a phone call wouldn't do anything he wanted and needed to say to Kim justice. If she were to ever truly understand their relationship, he needed to give a straight-forward, honest explanation. It was what she deserved, what would make her see the truth and make sense of things.

But the temptation! At the same time, Jared bit his tongue and stared at the phone screen. To simply hear her angelic voice, and to engage in an actual conversation with her, would be sweet relief.

No, not simply a chat through a metal device. He needed to _be_ with her.

How he wanted to run to her house, to explain everything and why he had been ignoring her call, to reassure her not to worry about him. To press his lips to her face, just like before, but this time not only her forehead, but all over to taste her soft, heavenly skin.

Of course, then he would have to reveal his secrets, the truth of the Quileute legends. It was about time, and even though Jared was fearful of her reaction-especially with the part about his and Kim's companionship-, he knew she needed the full story. She was probably already growing suspicious of his leaves of absence, rapid changes in demeanor, and of course, physical growth. His classmates were.

That was the right thing to do. Slowly, Jared pushed himself off the bed and up to his feet, down the stairs and to the front door, peeking into the kitchen to inform him mother of where he was going.

"Hey Mom, is it okay if I go to a friend's house?"

Glancing up from the laptop screen, his mother stared at him through her thin-framed glasses. "Which friend?" she questioned, a few strands of loose hair falling from her bun into her face.

"Uh…" If he was going to come clean to Kim, he may as well to his mom. "Kim Connweller."

Instantly, his mother's face softened. "Oh...that young lady. You've known her for a long time, haven't you? She's a real sweetheart."

"She is." At his response, a smile grew on his mother's face, knowing and kind. "You sound like your dad after we dated for a few months...she's a special one, isn't she."

Before Jared could reply, his mother shook her head a few times, as if to clear their thoughts. "Stop listening to your old mother, Jared. Go get that girl or else."

He chuckled, amused by his mother's direct, but good-natured humor. "I'll always listen to you, Mom. I'll be back before 11." And with that, he rushed out the door, pausing to lock it behind him, and began jogging down the street.

The sun was setting, the sky a picturesque marbleization of pinks, baby blues, and soft peaches. Jared sighed, both in anticipation and contentment, and peeked down at his phone. 7:00 p.m.

It was time to see Kim.

* * *

**Thanks for reading and reviewing. It's great hearing from you all.**

**PS: Seth is amazing.**


	15. Imprinting Business

**Disclaimer: Twilight does not belong to me.**

**Thanks to the guest for commenting. Glad you like it! 3**

* * *

**Imprinting Business** _Kim_

Of all the things in the world, a shirtless boy would most definitely not be something Kim expected to be sitting in her kitchen.

Hoping to take a break from homework and grab a bite to calm her growling stomach, Kim stepped into the room-only to be stopped in her tracks by the sight of a teenage boy, _without a shirt,_ sitting in a chair at the family dining table. Jared, who's head was bent over, apparently inspecting his chest, jerked upwards at the sight of Kim. "Oh! Um...hey Kim!"

Meanwhile, Kim was completely paralyzed with shock, awkwardness, and admittedly, admiration as well. Her gaze quickly darted across Jared's body, _his perfect body,_ with lean muscle cording his arms and abdominals. There wasn't anything gross like visible armpit or chest hair; rather, his upper body was a smooth, tan plane, with bulging biceps and abs. Kim could always see the lines of his muscles through the shirts that Jared normally wore, but seeing everything up-close and in person was…

Daunting. And too sexy to handle.

Realizing she was checking him out, Kim blushed and looked away. Quickly, Jared grabbed his shirt off of the chair and yanked it on, face red as well. He cleared his throat pointedly. "Er...sorry about that," he spoke in a gruff tone, not quite meeting her eyes, "I...um…"

_So, so awkward…_ Kim laughed nervously, and Jared immediately looked at her, an amused smile growing on his reddened face. "You have a cute laugh," he stated, grinning softly.

Kim would have started giggling even more awkwardly, until she remembered to wonder why Jared was even at her house. She straightened up. "Why are you here, Jared?"

His cheerful expression faded. "Your mom let me in a few minutes ago. I think you were in your bedroom. Didn't want to disturb you."

"That's not what I meant." Fear, anger, and annoyance surged through Kim. "There was that robbery last Friday, and you just ran into the crime scene! I called you, and you couldn't bother to leave a message? I was so worried!" she snapped, glaring at him, grasping in that moment how much Jared meant to her as a friend and how terrified she had been that Friday. "I've been trying to get a hold of you this entire week, and it was just like you vanished!" She had even almost visited Jared and Sam's house, only held back by her mother's insistence to remain calm.

Jared's eyebrows drew together, looking surprised and wounded at her outburst. "Please...Kim...please don't be angry with me," he begged her, his eyes pleading like a sad puppy.

Kim sighed in defeat. It wasn't right to lash out at him for all of her worry. "I'm sorry. I was just scared for you that day," she admitted.

He held out his arms, and Kim walked into the embrace. She buried her nose into his shirt, breathing in his intoxicating scent, sweet like tree sap and somehow masculine. They hadn't really hugged much before, but this...this was much different from just chatting.

They stayed like that for a few moments, his arms wrapped around her small frame and creating a safe haven, her face pressed into his strong shoulder. "I'm sorry too," he muttered into her hair. "I owe you an explanation. For all of this shit."

"Do you...do you want to go outside to talk? More private, I guess."

"Yeah." Jared untangled his arms from Kim, who tried not to miss the rush of heat that escaped once he did so. "Let's go."

* * *

"You know the Quileute legends, don't you?"

The pair was standing in Kim's backyard, walking through the flower garden, and awaiting this explanation of events. "Yeah, I do," Kim replied, recalling the summer nights with her grandfather and the stories of the Taha Aki and his tribe, their spirits becoming one with the bodies of the great wolves, defending their people from the Cold Men, or bloodsuckers. "But...what does that have to do with anything?"

"Well the thing is-" Jared swore mid-sentence, grimacing as he stared down at his leg. "Shit!"

He pulled his foot out of the thorny rose bushes which he had unfortunately stepped into while Kim gaped at the damage done: a six-inch, bloody gash marking the side of his calf. "Oh my God," she breathed, "I didn't know our roses could injure someone so badly! Let's get you inside so my mom can-"

"I'm fine Kim," Jared replied quickly while backing up from Kim. "I'm seriously okay, really, I'm totally, totally good…" Now he was babbling. Something was up.

"Jared, seriously we should go inside. That cut looks pretty bad." Kim quickened her pace to keep up with Jared's backward fast-walking. Craning her head, she leaned forward to catch a glimpse of his wound-

Only to see that it was gone.

Where the gash had been was now a smooth, slightly pink mark on the skin. All the blood drained out of Kim's face. "What the hell," she whispered in disbelief, as Jared winced at her shock. "I was hoping you wouldn't see that yet," he muttered.

She was now backing up from Jared. "So...so you have...some crazy healing powers, huh?" Jared was apparently frozen where he was standing, face stricken by her panicking, yet not saying a word.

Kim began laughing, but in a terrified, hysterical manner, while grasping for things in her mind, _anything_, to make sense of the fucked up situation. The legends, she realized through the haze of _what-the-hell-is-this_ and urge to run for the hills, was what Jared was planning on talking about with her until this happened.

The legends of the wolves.

Her bouts of laughter subsided as she remembered her grandfather describing the wolf people. _"After first shifting into wolves, their temperature immediately went up. Their bodies matured, becoming fit and strong. And to fight the vampires, they needed to be able to recover quickly. Not only were the shapeshifters physically capable of amazing feats, they could self-heal wounds much faster than humans…"_

The description fit Jared exactly. The temperature, bodily growth, and now, healing. Kim murmured, "You're a wolf."

Jared, who was standing a few feet away from her, nodded. "Yeah. A shapeshifter."

"Paul and Sam too?"

"Yep."

He was the wolf warriors in the story, no joke. Astonishingly, Kim's heart rate had slowed since experiencing this realization that her good friend could transform into a massive dog any moment now.

"You're not lying, are you?"

"No."

Jared was watching her with a tense expression, most likely worried Kim would freak out once again and run screaming from the place.

"When did you first shift?"

"A few months ago, when I left school for those weeks," he answered slowly, muscles tight, still waiting for Kim's panicking. She was also waiting as well.

"How...how is it like? Being a wolf, I mean," Kim asked.

His mouth dropped, closing, then opening again in confusion and incredulity. "It was terrifying at first, but I had my pack mates to help me...Kim, how are you taking this so well?" he questioned.

"I don't know." But she did know. She could say in the moment, however, that while it was quite a jarring explanation, she didn't feel like the world was falling apart. Rather, she felt awe, that her grandfather's tales-though a small part of her had always believed in them-were proven to be true, and that Jared was one of the protectors she had always be enraptured by as a child and even now in high school. It was like someone had just told her that a fantasy that she had already thought to be real was actually true, and she was now in the stage where she wanted to know everything and just ask a bunch of questions.

"That's why I had to leave last Friday," he stated. "There wasn't really a robbery," he paused before hesitantly continuing. "I sensed a vampire nearby. Sam, Paul, and I've been patrolling to make sure it doesn't come here anymore."

"Did you get injured?" Jared ignored her question, letting out a short, harsh chuckle. "Kim, I mean it. How are you so calm? I just told you I'm a freaking _dog_, and you're just asking me questions?"

"I always believed in it," she replied firmly. "In fact," she said, smiling slightly, "I think it's pretty cool. I always loved the legends," before stating matter-of-factly, "I have a feeling you're not telling me everything."

"I'm not." He blew out a long, slow breath. "Well, at least I got the hard part over." He paused for a few moments, before speaking once again.

"Have you ever heard of imprinting?"

"My grandfather never told me about that, no." Was this part of the truth as well?

"It's when...it's when a shapeshifter sees someone who is his soulmate. It's like love at first sight, except it's greater. When you make the first eye contact with your imprint, it's like everything going on around you stops, a force stronger than gravity tying you to that person. And she becomes your everything. You live to make her happy, protect her from any harm, do whatever she wants you to, whether this is through being an older brother, a best friend, or a lover."

A slow realization flamed in Kim's gut. "You imprinted...but...on who?"

"You. I imprinted on you, Kim."

And just like that, all the air rushed out of Kim's lungs. "I'm your soulmate?"

"No!" he exclaimed, before softening his voice. "I mean, yes, but not in the way you think. I'll be anything you need me to be, a friend or a boyfriend. I just need you to be happy."

"So do you choose who you imprint and how you react?"

"No. It just happens, and it causes you emotional and physical pain to be apart from the imprint." That was not the answer she was looking for.

Oh hell.

This wasn't supposed to happen. She and Jared were supposed to be together, best friends and eventually, she had hoped, in a loving relationship.

But not because of some stupid tribal bonding order that meant that he didn't exactly fall in love with her like she did with him. Anger surged through her, fury that the only time she could have a guy she loved for years was because he didn't have a choice.

It wasn't fair to her or to him. "So," she asked bitterly, "Do you love me?"

"I..Kim, yes of course I love you. Of course I do. I can't not love you." His forehead creased with concern as he noticed her rapidly changing mood. "Kim-"

"That's not what I asked," Kim replied dejectedly, now fully reigning in her hurt. "You just _love_ me because of some weird soulmate-arranged-loving-thing that you couldn't choose."

"Kim, please…" She turned away, so that Jared would not see her eyes welling up with tears of frustration, defeat, and overwhelmingly torn emotions. "Please," he begged, his voice writhing with despair. "Don't cry."

He reached for her, but she jumped back, much to the agony twisting his face. She wiped her nose, muttering, "I need some time to think. C-Can you leave?" "Kim, I can't leave you like-" "No! Please, Jared, I need you to. Leave me alone."

She didn't even look up to see if he had left. Of course he would; imprinting would make him do so. Just like how imprinting would make him "love" her, or so he thought.

Kim could care less that the guy she was crushing on could turn into a freaking dog. All she could think about in the moment was that this canine was apparently her arranged lover.

* * *

**As you can see (or read), my storyline is tad bit different from Stephenie Meyers'. Kim does take the truth of the legends in stride, but not so much for the imprinting. I think that if Seth were to imprint on me-as he someday will, you mark my words-I would care less about the shifting and more about the "forced" relationship between us. I'm actually not sure how I would react in a situation like that…**

**Thank you all for R&R-ing. If you're a guest, make an account so I can reply to you!**


	16. A Close Call

**Disclaimer: The Twilight franchise does not belong to me.**

**Thanks to Madhu for commenting. But make an account so I can reply to you!**

* * *

**A Close Call** _Jared_

He saw her coming down the street before she did.

It was Wednesday, his third day back at school since mid year recess. Which, to him, was not exactly a "recess," but endless patrols around La Push, insufficient sleep, and lack of meetings with Kim.

Except for that one night. Oh, how terrified she had looked at his injury, for both his welfare and at his instantaneous healing! She had accepted the whole shape-shifting business, much more easily than he would have expected, but when it came to his explanation of imprinting…

There was such anger, fear, and despair in her horrified gaze. His insides had turned out, with gut-wrenching agony, when that tear slipped down the side of her face. And while Jared longed to reach for her, to pull her into his embrace and wipe the tears off her perfect skin, she told him to leave.

So he did.

Kim ignored his phone calls over the weekend, even though she had been staring at it the entire time while it was ringing, sighing in defeat and then rejecting the call. (Yes, he might have snuck to her house in the middle of the night, in ninja-wolf-form, and peeked into her window. He was getting desperate.) Not to mention pretty pathetic.

At school, she didn't talk to him in class. Not even when he murmured a hesitant, "Hey, Kim." She would only glance at him for a moment-a few, glorious, heart-stopping seconds-and then a flood of unreadable emotions would fill her gaze, followed by her turning back around to stare pointedly at the teacher. And then, his heart would shatter a little more.

Melodramatic, much? Not really. The torture of not being able to talk with Kim, feeling her unhappiness, and worst of all, knowing he was the one responsible for her feelings, was almost unbearable. It gnawed away at his insides, gave his head an ear-splitting ache, so intense that Paul and Sam were also affected by his suffering. The thoughts of Kim, exploding into his mind every few minutes, were so distracting to the other two, that Sam gave him Tuesday off. _You unable to stop thinking about Kim isn't going to help us patrol. Go take a break. You deserve a break. And feel free to talk with us...even though we can read your mind._

He had complied, only to go home and sulk some more. Again, he had tried calling Kim, but his tries were futile. No answer.

So here he was now, supposed to be walking to Sam's house to begin his patrol, but frozen in at the end of the sidewalk, right before it cut off at the clearing of the woods, and stuck staring at Kim walking in his direction. He could not keep his eyes off her, not even when she looked up from the ground and saw him gawking at her, and immediately flushed.

"Kim."

"What do you want?" Jared winced from the sting of her sharp words. She tilted her chin up to stare at him hostilely, hands on her hips, unpleased and suspicious, yet still absolutely beautiful. "Kim, I'm sorry. For freaking you out and stuff. Please don't hate me."

Her eye lost some of the spark of anger, softening just slightly. "Jared...I just don't know how to feel...I can't…" her voice trailed off, as his heart split in half once again. She took a deep breath, then continued, "I'm sorry too...I'm just having..."

A shiver suddenly ran down Jared's spine. Followed by the disgusting, particular stench of something that could only be one thing…

Vampire.

Slowly, he began to growl, head whipping around and trying to get a better whiff and locate where the monster was. Close by. _Very _close by. Too close to his Kim.

Jared grabbed Kim's hand, much to her protests-"Hey! What are your doing!"-and sprinted into the woods. They had to get somewhere, somewhere away from the town, but a place they could reach before the leech could get to them.

"Jared, what the hell is-" He shushed her, and continued running, electric fear coursing through him. Kim stumbled, only for Jared to scoop her into her arms, just like he did that Friday, and keep rushing past the trees.

"Jared!" Now she sounded less confused, and more terrified and indignant. She began pounding on Jared's chest with her fists, yelling at him to put her down. But he couldn't. The leech...it was all around them, the revolting reek following him, mocking him and his attempts to get away and run even faster.

"Trying to run away, huh? How adorable, wolf boy. Adorable indeed." A woman's sneering voice, floated out of the air. And out of the trees, a tall lady leaped out of the trees, landing smack in front of Jared and stopping him in his tracks.

Kim screamed. Blood roared in Jared's ears as he dropped Kim and pushed her behind him, backing up from the leech and growling. "Aw, protecting the human? You dogs are so cute," the vampire jeered at him, her voice smooth and slick, yet somehow grating at the same time. Her eyes, black with thirst, seemed to widen with desire as his growling grew louder.

Jared glanced all around, as did Kim, frantically searching for a way to escape and praying Sam and Paul would pop out of the bushes and rip the bloodsuckers' head off. No such luck. "You can't outrun me, little pup." She licked her lips.

Sheer fury and protectiveness smothered Jared. "Kim, run," he spoke as calmly as possible. "What? No! Jared, I can't-" "RUN!"

And he pushed Kim behind him, despite her refusals, not watching long enough to see if she would heed his pleas. Instead, he turned to face the leech.

"As soon as I'm done with you and your stupid tribal legends, I'll go for that girl," she whispered lethally.

He exploded.

In a blur of ripped clothes, now flying all around him, Jared charged the vampire in wolf form, with energy and outrage so immense it could only be that of a Quileute protecting his imprint. He tackled her to the ground, gnashing his teeth and snarling viciously. Not his Kim.

Immediately, the leech flipped him over, so that she was pinning him to the forest floor, choking him with her titanium grip. "You're not that strong yet, are you, pup?" she murmured, leaning in close. "Looks like this fight is already won."

A gray blur whizzed overhead, knocking into the bloodsucker's head with a grinding crunch and throwing her off of Jared. Not injured, but merely surprised, she, as well as Jared looked up to see what it was.

A rock. And standing nearby, a small, teenage girl, holding yet another watermelon-sized rock, face red with fury and chest heaving.

Kim. That gorgeous, amazing, smart, fierce, _fucking idiotic_ girl.

"Don't hurt him," she warned the vampire, rage-filled gaze holding the leech's.

In the next moment, everything happened at once.

Two wolves shot out of the trees, both landing on top of the vampire, both growling and baring their teeth. The pack had arrived to resolve the battle.

_You both ok, Jared? _Thank heavens for his alpha. _Fine, boss. Thanks for getting here. _

_Yeah, well we weren't gonna let you die so easily._ Leave it to Paul to make smart-mouthed comments in situations like these. _Thanks man,_ Jared thought gratefully.

Together the three wolves surrounded the leech, who was now cowering from them. _We'll take care of her, Jared. You go to Kim._

Jared gladly complied. He padded away from the scene, wishing that his clothes weren't shredded so that he could shift back. Oh well. She had already seen him, as a huge, furry dog, trying to murder a blood-sucking monster. There was really nothing left to lose.

Kim was standing several yards away, eyes glued to him. He tugged on her shirt gently, pulling her away from what Sam and Paul were about to do.

They walked for a few minutes in silence-which was inevitable, with Jared in wolf form-until Jared decided they were a good distance away from the others. Then he faced Kim.

He inhaled her vanilla and cinnamon fragrance and locked his eyes on her chocolate ones. Feeling the rapid thumps of her heart, he stayed put and she hesitantly stepped closer to him. She grazed her soft fingers against the side of his face, rubbing the hair lightly.

"You scared me back there, you know."

Jared cocked his head to one side. "Not the shifting," she hastily continued, "but when I thought...I thought you were going to die."

_I was terrified that you were going to die._ She leaned in closer, scratching his ears, much to his delight. "I'm glad you didn't," Kim murmured, "I was terrified that you would." She was talking a lot now, going on about the previous incident, as if the near-death experience had made her decide to overcome her silent treatment of Jared and just ramble on.

He licked her face with a loud slurp, out of glee and pure relief that she was here, alive and chatting with, or to, him. "Ew! Jared!" she yelped, jumping backwards and giggling adorably. She wiped the slime off her face with the back of her hand, making a face at the saliva. "And just when I thought you were cute as a dog." Jared wagged his tail naughtily, bending down and waggling his bottom, as if he were inviting her to play.

"You're evil, you know that?"

_I know._

Kim went on, as if she could hear his thoughts. So it was true that people communicated with animals more easily than with each other. "Thanks for saving my life, though."

_I had to. I would rip myself apart if you died._

"I guess you really do care about me, huh?"

_You're everything to me._

* * *

**I'm glad Kim didn't just run away. When necessary, she can stand, be tough, and fight. **

**Thanks for all 45 follows! As always, I appreciate your comments. They motivate me and help me to improve. :)**


	17. Questions

**Disclaimer: As usual, the Twilight series does not belong to me.**

**You guys...The Wolf Heart now has 10,777 views, 28 reviews, 26 favs, and 46 followers...jeez that's a lot. Thanks!**

* * *

**Questions**_Kim_

That day, Jared walked with her.

It was a bit windy that afternoon, especially while moving through the La Push woods. But Kim had never felt warmer, with Jared's huge form pressed against her body.

Kim was in the process of texting her mother that she would be late home, as she would be with Jared at Sam's house. She replied promptly-_It's perfectly fine, honey. Your dad and I will be home later too. Tell Jared I said hi. TTLY!_ Rolling her eyes, both at her mom's Jared comment and use of mobile language, she shoved her phone back into her backpack.

He stopped suddenly and made a snuffling sound, prompting Kim to look at his wolfy face. Jared butted his gigantic head gently against her stomach, before turning to walk into a group of bushes nearby.

A bit confused, Kim waited, wondering what he was up to, until he returned a few moments later-that is, not in monster wolf form, but as a person.

Human Jared looked just the same as he did earlier that day: tall, strong, and (Kim added in her mind with slight embarrassment) hot. Sporting khaki shorts, sneakers, and much to her secret delight, _no shirt_, had somehow managed to get dressed in the bushes, though Kim recalled that his clothes had ripped when he had shifted.

_Shifted_.

Kim remembered the thrill that had coursed through her when she saw Jared morph into a huge, bear-sized wolf after encountering the vampire. Partially, it was shock, but mostly, awe, at how large, powerful, sturdy, and yet graceful, he looked as a dog.

But the look on his face wasn't happy.

"You shouldn't have done that," Jared spoke, eyes unhappy. "She could have gotten to you."

The vampire. Her hair, sleek, long, and golden, and her eyes, empty, black, and cold. That hunger and intense desire with which she had stared at Kim could not even be mirrored by the starving homeless nearby in Forks. Jared would have killed it, if not two other wolves had shown up, one dark silver, and one black with piercing golden eyes. Sam and Paul, most likely.

"I thought she was going to kill you. I couldn't just stand around and let you do everything."

"You shouldn't have." His face was slowly becoming tense with anger. "It wasn't safe."

"I wasn't just going to let you die!" she snapped, a bit peeved that after her one act of heroism, she was being chided like a child. "I'm not completely helpless."

"I know that…" His eyes became desperate, pleading. "But, please, promise me one thing. That if that ever happens again, you'll run."

_I'm not helpless_. But she sighed. "Okay. Fine," Kim gave in. "But it would be better if that would never happen again."

"Yeah. I never want you to be in that situation again."

Again, Kim thought of how sheerly protective Jared had acted of her. Instinctively, she shuddered.

Jared's dissatisfied expression melted and he immediately stepped close to her, wrapping his strong arms around her frame. For a few moments, she was stiff with surprise and the rush of warmth, like a blast of heated hair had blown into her face. Then she slowly relaxed into his hold.

"Are you cold? I'm so sorry! Are you scared? Please don't be. I'm sorry!" he exclaimed worriedly, all past unhappiness forgotten. Her stomach churned with a mixture of anxiety and pleasure as he began rubbing his arms against hers to create friction.

While Kim wasn't exactly cold and was still annoyed about being told off, she found herself loving the feeling of being close to Jared. "Thanks." She pressed her face against Jared's broad chest, shivering when Jared's hot breath softly brushed against her neck. It was like she had craved being in his embrace and touch, but had been deprived of it for so long.

_You're a hypocrite,_ part of her said. _You said he was a stalker...and now you're cuddling with him. Pretty soon you'll be following him everywhere he goes._

Kim squashed that part down. _Shut up._

* * *

They sat in Sam and Emily's kitchen, eating together. Sam and Paul were still out, probably taking care of the woman, and Emily was "off to the grocery to get enough food to feed a pack of wolves," according to her note.

Oddly enough, Kim didn't feel unnerved or annoyed by Jared's overreacting when she had simply shivered. Instead she felt...flattered. Even pleased, that he cared so much.

Even more strange, she didn't even blink an eye at the thought of the fight. Vampires and hot guys who turn into dogs? Eh. Big deal.

Wow. She was really losing it.

"I think I'm going crazy."

Kim felt Jared stiffen, and then slowly relax again. "Why do you think that?" he questioned carefully, as if he had been worried all this time she was going to ask that.

"I'm not freaked out at all. Seriously. I'm not really scared by you or the vampire. Hell, I'm not even freaked out by the fact that you can turn into a dog! Why is that?"

He was silent for a few moments, as if he was considering her question. Then he began chuckling softly. Within a few seconds, he was laughing loudly, one hand pressed to his mouth in an attempt to stifle his guffawing.

Despite the fact that he was laughing at her honest question, Kim couldn't help but giggle and then sigh at the sight. "I guess that means I am clinically insane."

"No, you're not," Jared countered, straightening his back. Laugh attack over, he reached over to place his hands on both sides of her face as she jumped slightly from the touch. "I was just laughing because...God. You pretty much just said that you accept the whole legends thing about leeches and me...as a wolf. A freaking wolf, Kim! And we even just met a vampire." He shuddered. "I mean, even Emily was surprised at first. But you just handled it so well."

"Well, not all of it. I mean...not really the part about...imprinting, you know," she replied, all too aware of his warm hands on the sides of her face. The pressure was calming and his woodsy scent filled her senses, as she felt her face heat up

"Ah. Imprinting," Jared responded unsteadily, shifting to slide his hands into his pockets. "I don't...I mean, I can…" he rambled awkwardly. "Um...I don't know what to say." He laughed forcibly.

Kim decided to fire the questions that had been burning on her mind for the past few days. "What would happen if I died?"

"I would kill myself."

She snorted, then stopped mid-laugh to cough in disbelief. "Seriously?"

"Kim, a wolf can't live without his imprint. It hurts us to be apart from you," he stated. "The death of an imprint would be so excruciating that we wouldn't want to live anymore."

Glancing around the kitchen, Kim saw photo frames on the faded blue walls. A decorative, carved wooden one framed a picture of Sam with his arms around Emily's waist. Another one held an image of them holding hands and gazing at the mountains at a cliffside in the woods. And another one, of them wrapped up in each other at the beach. Emily was laughing at something, and Sam was just looking at her, with an unnameable intensity, an expression filled with love and content.

Maybe that was how Jared looked at her.

"How does imprinting make you...feel about me?" Kim asked tentatively.

At this, Jared fixed Kim with an intense stare. "To put it in words? Well...I need to make sure you are alive, well, and happy. I want to be anything that you want or need." His eyes blazed with a passion, a bit daunting and one that Kim could not quite identify. "I need to be there for you and protect you."

_Well...that was intense_. As intense as Sam's expression when he was with Emily. She was floored by the ferventness of his words. Kim took a deep breath, trying to absorb everything. It was like she was...a vital organ, she supposed, to him. He would gladly accept death than deal with the agony of loss, and could not, _would not_, live without her.

But could she?

"I know, it's a lot to digest." Jared murmured, guilt in his eyes. "I'm sorry this is making you feel confused or scared."

They were silent for a few moments. "Can I ask you some things?" he inquired.

"Go ahead."

"How did you manage to stay so calm when...that thing came?" he inquired.

That was an easy answer. "I guess that it's because you were there. I always feel better when you're around. I can do things I never would have thought I could do without you. I couldn't let you get hurt, because I knew you wouldn't let her get to me."

Even now, she could say that she felt fine. It wasn't like Jared wasn't going to let any harm come to her. She felt safe with him.

"Yeah. I would never let a leech touch you." He shuddered, then to her surprise, grinned. "I guess imprinting affects both of us."

This only brought up even more questions. She opened her mouth to press him for more answers, but Jared cut her off. "It's getting kind of late." Kim looked through the window to see the sun was beginning to darken, the sun setting behind the rolling hills. Almost time for dinner. "I know, you have more questions," he spoke before she could. "But I don't want to make your parents mad so that they ban you from seeing me. We can talk more over the weekend."

"Oh, and one more thing. Make sure you don't tell anyone else about this...vampire and shapeshifter business. It needs to be kept secret, even though I know you won't blab about it," Jared added.

"I know. I'll keep my mouth shut."

And with that, Jared walked her home. They made small talk along the way, making sure to steer clear of the topic of shapeshifting, leeches, and most of all: imprinting.

Even though Jared had answered many of her questions, their discussion had only created even more.

* * *

**Now that it's summer, I'm going to try to post more. But just as long as you follow, favorite, and REVIEW. It motivates me, almost as much as the thought of Seth does.**


	18. New Member

**Disclaimer: The Twilight series does not belong to me. But hopefully Seth's heart will one day be!**

**Note: The storyline of this fanfic may not be exact with Twilight-for example, Kim may never mention Bella or the Cullens. I'm just going to pretend they didn't come yet... **

* * *

**New Member**_Jared_

William Shakespeare was starting to get onto Jared's nerves.

Bored out of his mind, Jared once again glanced at the clock. 2:58. Which meant exactly two minutes until he could escape the living hell of literature class and walk with Kim over to her house, where they would be watching a movie. Honestly, he didn't care what movie they were watching-just as long as he could get out of here and be with Kim.

"So, class, as you can see, Hamlet was a man of quite a few troubles, troubles that he brought upon himself…" Mr. Barnes droned on in a monotone voice, unaware of all the uninterested, sleepy students. Actually, Jared would be cool with any movie except for William Shakespeare. After reading and "analyzing" _Hamlet_ for about three weeks, Jared was starting to both hate and pity the guy. It must have sucked to live back then, because even speaking English was difficult with all the "thys, thyselves, thou" and other stupid words. Just reading the tongue-twisting language, let alone attempting to speak it, gave Jared a headache.

_Two more minutes…_ Jared groaned quietly as Mr. Barnes moved on to discuss character qualities of each protagonist and antagonist in the play. The only person Jared was even remotely interested in discussing inherent character traits was Kim. And he could name quite a few: kind, independent, strong, shy, beautiful, just for starters.

The bell rang, and everyone bolted up and out of their seats, much to the chagrin of Mr. Barnes-"Hey, I'm not done!...oh fine, leave. Have a good weekend." Feeling a bit sorry for the interrupted man, Jared stood up with a bit more control, taking time to grab his bags and wishing his teacher a good day before leaving and heading for Kim's classroom…

Only to be yanked aside forcefully and dragged the opposite way down the hallway, by the one and only Paul Lahote. "What the hell?! Hey, hey! Paul!" Ignoring his protests and flailing, Paul only strengthened his grip and continued marching through the school. "Hey! I have something to do with Kim! Her classroom is that way!"

Paul only snorted. "And would that _something_, by any chance, be getting hot and heavy?" "What?! No! We're just going to watch a movie!"

"Well, tell her you're gonna need to take a rain check. 'Cause there's some business going down with the pack and we all have to help." Paul replied, unusually practical and focused. He let go of Jared, only to break into a run at the exit to the school. "We have to hurry. Sam needs our help."

At once, Jared understood. He began jogging alongside Paul, whose face was grim and serious. The pair didn't speak until they reached the woods, with Jared asking, "I can't sense a vampire...is everything alright?"

"Not a vampire. But it's not alright. Embry shifted."

_Oh hell._ Jared immediately felt pity for the newest member of their pack. He knew too well of the panic and fear he experienced when he first shifted. Only Sam's reassurance and leadership kept him from going on a crazy rampage through town. "Where are they?"

"Somewhere in the woods, I hope. At least that's what Sam said when he texted me, trying to chase the freaked out pup down. We need to help find him." And with that, Paul stripped, shoved his clothes into his backpack, and phased, as did Jared. Ditching their bags under a tree, they split up and hurdled through the woods.

_Thanks for making it here so quickly, boys, _Sam thought gratefully. _Apparently this pup wasn't feeling well today and stayed home. Then he took a walk outside and it happened. Should still be somewhere nearby. _

_Got it, boss._

_Please don't call me that. Good luck, _Sam thought in return.

Within a few minutes, Jared caught a whiff of a peculiar scent, terrified and panicked, and one that could only be that of a horrified, new shapeshifter. _On his trail right now…_Jared thought with relief. And sure enough, a gray and black mass of fur was curled under a tree in front of him. It stiffened, then unfurled to reveal a massive wolf, with a white face and dark gray nose, baring its teeth.

It backed up from Jared, who tried to make himself as unthreatening as possible. But the wolf only began to growl and gnash his teeth as Jared moved closer.

Jared grasped for something gentle and soothing to say to calm him down. _I know that it's scary. But we're like you and here to help you. I'm Jared._

The wolf relaxed, but only just a bit. _Jared...Cameron?_

_Yep._

_What...how...how can I hear your thoughts? And what am I?_

_It's part of being in this pack. We can hear each others thoughts while in wolf form, _Sam replied. Out of the bushes, Sam and Paul ran over to join Embry and Paul. _I'm Sam, and this is Paul._

_Sam Uley? As in...Leah's ex-boyfriend? _Sam growled at this, prompting Embry to shrink a bit. _Yes. I'm the alpha of our pack, and Jared's beta. You're our newest member_

_Well, Embry,_ Paul thought. _Guess you're a shapeshifter now, like us._

_Shapeshifter? Like in those legends?_

_Yeah. They're real shit. We protect our people from the Cold Ones._

_Wow. _Embry was in awe. Then Jared felt Embry's fear and panic once again. _But...is this forever? I don't want to be a dog._

_We can shift back, _Jared replied. _Speaking of shifting, can we phase back now? I kind of have somewhere to be…_

Paul laughed at this. _Yeah. He's got to meet up with his girlfriend so they can get down to business._

_No! Shut up, Lahote. I told you, we're watching a movie. Besides, she's not even my girlfriend. _Now Jared was wistfully thinking of his imprint. What if they were a couple? Jared knew he wanted to, and was pretty sure Kim wanted to as well.

_Oh great. Now he's all mushy and stuff. Go get a room with your gross thoughts. _

_Shut up, Paul._

* * *

"So, how long have you been a shifter?"

"Same as Paul. A few months," Jared answered, taking a sip of his juice, hand-squeezed by Emily herself. She had been too pleased when the four of them tramped into Sam's house, only to find that yet another shifter had joined the pack, immediately giving Embry a warm smile. That was Emily to you. Always the mother.

The four guys were sitting in the woods and enjoying food-fully clothed and in human form, mind you. For the past few hours or so, they had been helping to ease Embry into everything and answer his questions. Jared had to admit, Embry accepted the entire thing better than he would have expected. But then again, he had them to help. Jared had only had Sam.

As of now, Sam was patiently explaining to Embry how they were the protectors of their tribe, just like the shapeshifters in previous Quileute generations. Embry listened respectfully and quietly, nodding once in a while. They defended their people from vampires, and to do so, they could phase into massive, powerful wolves.

"So...I can't tell anyone?"

"Nope." This time Paul answered. "It's got to be a secret. Well," he added, with a teasing side-glance at Jared. "Unless you imprint on someone. _Then_ you can tell them."

"Ah, shut up."

He grabbed his phone and turned it on, just to check to see if anyone had called. And almost immediately, it began ringing. "Hello?" "Hey honey! Just wanted to ask when you're coming back from Kim's place," his mom cheerfully spoke.

"Shoot!" He jolted to his feet, glancing at the time on the phone screen. _7:00_. Meaning that he had missed the movie with Kim. He almost cursed, but then remembered that his Mom was on the line. Being banned from seeing Kim for using foul language for eternity would be even worse. "Uh...coming home now...when is dinner?"

"In half-an-hour. Your dad's home early, so we can eat together!"

"I'll, um, be there soon. Bye mom!" He ended the call, grabbing his backpack while swearing at himself for forgetting about his date. Stupid pack business.

"You can go, Jared," Sam said. "We're good now."

"Yeah. Thanks Jared," Embry murmured.

Jared only nodded, before briskly turning to sprint home. How could he be such a goddamn idiot? Kim would probably be pissed at him now. Maybe she had even watched the movie alone. Or thought he had set her up.

Man. He was pathetic.

He flipped through his messages, noting that Kim had called him three times and texted him as well. While running through the streets, he texted her a quick message. _Hey. I'm sorry I couldn't come. There was some pack business and then I forgot. I'll make it up to you. Sorry again._

Even _that_ sounded pathetic. It was a downright weak excuse, he knew.

Sometimes, being a shapeshifter really sucked.

* * *

**Reviews, favs, and follows motivate me and spur me to write. Thanks!**


End file.
